Unconditionally
by LotteLove
Summary: The world went to hell, and then it was just them. Merricat and Sophie, sisters desperately trying to survive in a world where the dead roam and hunt them. It had always been just them, but when fate hurls them in the path of a group of survivors, suddenly it's not just them anymore. Its uncharted territory in this new landscape of death, for everyone. Eventual DarylxOC
1. PART 1 Chapter 1

**Hello dearies, welcome to Unconditionally. I hope you enjoy the story, but first and foremost, the usual disclaimer: I own nothing related to The Walking Dead, and make no profit from writing this story, I just do it for fun. I only own OC characters, which are currently Merricat and Sophie (but I am developing more as the story continues), I don't post on other websites, is the only website that I write on. Also, be warned that this story is rated M for coarse language, adult themes and violence. Now, with all that out of the way, please enjoy!**

 _ **Part One – The Camp**_

 _ **One**_

 _Our Father, who art in heaven Hallowed be thy name_

The dead man came running for her, elongated teeth created by receding guns gnashing and chomping. A quick slash, a heavy delivery, and he fell.

 _Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done On Earth as it is in heaven_

The next one came at her, hissing and practically foaming at the mouth as it reached out to her with its blackened fingers, yellow eyes locking onto hers. Another sharp blow, and its head went rolling.

 _Give us this day Our daily bread and forgive us Our trespasses_

Two dead men now came tumbling toward her, desperate for the warm blood pulsing in her veins. A slash to first, and a direct thrust into the other's head, right in between the eyes.

 _As we forgive those who trespass against us_

The last of the dead finally came crawling forward, barely making a snail's pace as it dragged its body across the ground. Mary Katherine watched it for a moment, almost with faint echoes of pity glazing over her mismatched eyes. She began to approach it slowly, twirling her sword comfortably in her left hand. She knelt to get closer to the creature. This one was a woman, now emaciated into grey peeling skin and rotting bones. It snarled up at her, withered hand raised feebly. Mary Katherine did not hesitate in piercing its skull with her blade.

 _And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen._

Mary Katherine removed the rag from her belt, wiping her sword clean before securing it into her scabbard. She made a quick sign of the cross and turned away from the grizzly scene. She fingered the tiny cross pendent she wore beneath her shirt, taking it out to give it a gentle kiss, _the Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want_. She glanced over at her car and felt relief to see Sophie still nestled down, sleeping soundly. Mary Katherine walked over, leaving the bodies behind, there would have been no point in removing them, they wouldn't be staying long enough for the sight to bother them much. The sun had barely been up an hour, the last roamers from their nightly prowling had finally dispersed, wandering off into the wilderness. She wrapped her knuckle lightly on the car window, smiling down at the little girl, "Sophie".

The girl opened her blue eyes, her blonde hair falling angelically over face, "Mama?"

Mary Katherine's heart sank, and she shook her head sadly, "No baby, it's only me. Im'a go rustle up some breakfast sweetheart, you know what to do".

"Don't leave the car no matter what", Sophie affirmed, nuzzling the old blanket under her chin.

"No matter what", Mary Katherine repeated.

"Merricat?" Sophie whimpered softly, peering up at her big sister.

"Yes, baby girl?" Mary Katherine asked.

"I need 'a pee", the girl answered.

Mary Katherine chuckled, "Come on then". She helped the little girl from the car. She had been sleeping in her little vest and underwear, her clothes still perched next to the dying fire from the night before. Mary Katherine led her to a sheltered spot and kept watch while the girl went about her business. "Now I want y'all to get dressed before a' leave, I don't want you wonderin' about like a wild thing", she told her sternly.

"Yes Merricat", Sophie complied cheerful, stuffing herself into the now clean white shorts and pink top. "Your shoes as well, I don't need no infected toes to worry about". Sophie huffed, but did as she commanded, slipping into her scruffy trainers.

"Now", smiled Mary Katherine, tucking a strand of Sophie's hair behind her ear. "Don't you just look pretty". She lingered a little longer, almost transfixed by the small innocent child. It was such a rare sight nowadays, ever since the world went to hell, innocent things, particularly children, were harder and harder to come by. "You be safe now, you hear me?"

"Yes Merricat, I promise, cross maw heart", Sophie replied gleefully as any four-year-old does.

"Hope to die?" Mary Katherine replied, and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, "Now go on into the car now, adda girl". Sophie stared at her sister a minute, her small hand resting under her chin, "Merricat, your witching eye is looking at me", she complained, finger pointed at Mary Katherine's one green eye. Her sister laughed lightly in response, and tapped it with her forefinger, "Why of course, it's always keeping an eye on you", she joked. One final hug, and Sophie clambered back inside the car, locking it behind her.

Mary Katherine took off jogging into the woods, her bow slung over her shoulder by the string. Once she was deep enough, she paused, gently licking her thumb and raising it to the sky. She wanted to judge the direction of the wind; it had been changing rather frequently of late. They were camped in a small brush of woodland just outside Atlanta, but she wasn't planning on keeping them there long, another day or two if needs be, but no later. Her train of thought was interrupted by a loud rumble emanating from her stomach. How many days had it been, three, four? Six actually. The last scraps of their provisions had all gone to Sophie, she needed it more. Mary Katherine knew that she had to find something. A few squirrels, a rabbit would be heaven. She stopped hoping for anything bigger, like a deer, a while back. The woods were almost picked clean, and the living hadn't been trudging through them.

Mary Katherine placed her hand to the ground, then her ear _. Breathe_. She listened intently. _Breathe._ Then, after roughly fifteen minutes of waiting in total silence, she heard what she was hoping for. Small, faint even, but there. Movement. Mary Katherine determined the direction that the sounds were coming from, and took off running, keeping her movements light and quiet. She followed the sounds with adamant determination, moving in such a way that she resembled a cat, stealthily stalking her prey. She was led deeper and deeper into the brush, the trees providing a cool sanctuary from the merciless glare of the sun. Her pace never faltered, despite her growing fatigue, she couldn't go back empty handed, it simply was not an option. She stopped for a moment, the sounds had become louder. The animal was large, nervous, cautious – judging by what she heard. Mary Katherine crouched down low behind a fallen tree, quietly removing an arrow from her quiver. She aligned her bow, waiting patiently. Minutes passed, but finally, just before she was going to go back on the trail, she was rewarded tenfold. A deer, an actual deer, emerged cautiously from the trees. It was young, beautiful, something in the time before Mary Katherine could never have imagined of ever hurting. But things were different now, it was kill or be killed, eat, or be eaten. She sucked in a breath. Aligned her eye to her target, _breath_. She was about to loose her arrow, when the unthinkable happened, a crunch, small shifting of leaves, noises that were not being made by her. Mary Katherine's heart began to race, her eyes dashing frantically back and force, was it a roamer? Another animal? Or worse, another survivor. She saw him fleetingly in the corner of her eye, a man in a green tank top, black crossbow in hands, aimed at _**her**_ deer. She growled under her breath, he hadn't seen her, he was too focused on her prize. It was now or never, Mary Katherine narrowed her gaze, and fired.

It all happened so quickly, in a matter of seconds, a flash, her arrow missed the deer. The thing panicked and scampered back into the woods. Mary Katherine was given no chance to register this however, as she was flung back into a tree. She gasped as her back connected to the hard oak behind her. Her brain kicking into over drive as blood trickled down her arm. She looked down at the source of the pain, and then to the arrow sticking out from her flesh. _The bastard had been aiming for her, not the goddamn deer_. The pain seared as she felt utterly helpless, pinned to a tree in the middle of nowhere. Her bow was too far from her side, and so she immediately pulled her sword from her scabbard, ready to fight the man tooth and nail if necessary. She heard him utter a curse under his breath as the man bounded forward, broodingly slinging his crossbow over his shoulder as he approached the injured woman. Mary Katherine's heart lurched in her mouth, but she did her best to maintain a cool exterior, she wasn't about to give the damn idiot any satisfaction.

"Do you have a goddamn death sentence?" he sneered angrily as he approached her, boots trudging through the fallen leaves.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You shot me!" Mary Katherine retaliated.

"Only cause you went an' scared the deer, putting yourself as a goddamn target. You never hunt before? Makin so much noise probably every damn geek in the county heard ya" he spat back. Mary Katherine could not believe his brashness, her mouth agape, the words fell short of her tongue. She wanted to curse at him until she was blue in the face, but the pain in her arm finally made itself known to her, refusing to be left unnoticed.

"Goddammit!" she hissed, nursing her injured shoulder. The man cursed vulgarly again before kneeling down to inspect the wound that he had just inflicted upon her. "Arrow ain't that deep", he told her bluntly, "Jus' a bout stopped short of your bone – ain't that serious, well, won't kill yah anyhow".

"Well gee", she exclaimed, her words dripping with sarcasm as she mimicked his speech, "Ain't I just so lucky?"

The man tugged at it, and Mary Katherine let out a scream, "Mother fucker!" she hissed, gritting her teeth in agony.

"Well if you wanna prance aroun' with an arrow pokin' outta yah, at's fine by me, no skin off my ass", he told her firmly. Mary Katherine glared at him hatefully, she had half a mind to gut him on the spot and pull the arrow out herself, but she knew realistically that such a scenario wasn't an option, not with a bummed-up arm. She exhaled sharply through her nose in surrender, remaining silent as she turned her head away from the ghastly sight that was her right shoulder. The man grimaced, taking a tight grip of the arrow, "Now Jesus Christ try an' hold still". He gave it a hard tug, and immediately the arrow was ripped out of her, taking a small chunk of Mary Katherine's flesh with it. She grunted loudly as the damn thing was pulled from her arm, not wanting to waste anymore of her breath on screaming. Like a hole in a dam, blood gushed from the open wound, and Mary Katherine finally eyed it up with an anxious expression etched upon her face. She knew that they barely had any medical supplies left, not after Sophie's last episode, and there wasn't anywhere for miles were she could scavenge for some more – the city was far too dangerous. The man rose to his feet, clearly unsettled by the scene, his eyebrows knitted together as he ran his fingers along his mouth. "What in the hell are you doin' out here by yourself anyhow?" he finally demanded. Mary Katherine couldn't help but laugh dryly as an answer as she pulled herself shakily to her feet. "Why would I tell you that?" she jeered, clutching her arm in a feeble attempt to constrict the flow of blood.

"Cause clearly you don't have a fucking clue what you're doin", the man shot back, and Mary Katherine felt her temper reach its breaking point, "Listen here you redneck son of a bitch –

"What you jus' call me?" he interrupted her mid-sentence.

"You heard me", she spat, "And I would have been just fine until you came along firing that thing like a maniac! And another thing –

Mary Katherine was interrupted a second time, but not by the man. Both of them tensed up as they heard a faint, high pitched scream in the distance. The man's expression was unreadable as her own heart lurched into her mouth as her eyes went wide in a terrifying realisation. It was faint and strained because of the distance, but there was no denying the direction the scream had come from. A brief moment of silence passed as the pair stood there frozen, and then again, only louder this time. "Sophie", Mary Katherine struggled to whisper, as if the breath had been knocked out of her lungs, "Sophie!" The pain in her arm and the blood seeping through it was completely forgotten as fast pumping adrenaline kicked her body into over drive. Completely ignoring the man, Mary Katherine took off in a sprint, bow forgotten but sword still in hand.

"Wait!" the man called after her, but there was clearly no stopping the woman. He cursed, raking a hand through his matted hair, "Goddamn woman", he finally snapped, and began running in quick pursuit of the girl.

The high-pitched screams became louder, and with each one that rang through her ears only furthered Mary Katherine's utter terror. She ran faster than her feet would have ever had allowed her before, chest throbbing, ears pulsing, the wind mercilessly cutting at her cheeks. One thought, no, one image kept replaying over and over in her mind; the vision of her little sister being torn apart by the dead. Despite it only taking her a few minutes, it felt like a lifetime before she had reached their camp clearing. Six, no seven roamers, surrounding their Cadillac. They hissed and snapped, banging their meaty grey hands on the windows. She could hear Sophie inside, crying hysterically. The man was hot on Mary Katherine's heels, crossbow aimed at the walkers, but his line of fire was blocked as the girl charged forward. The first roamer turned to meet her, but barely had a second to register this new prey before she rammed her blade into its skull. The others, now alerted to her presence, slowly turned as she jeered them on, drawing the undead away from the car. They came at her slowly, but she wasted no time, decapitating another, sending its head rolling. Another clawed forward, hissing and foaming despite its missing jaw. A quick but heavy blow, and she severed its head in half, its decaying blood decorating her cheek. Unbeknownst to Mary Katherine, the man had already killed two of the roamers, the first with his crossbow, the second with his bowie knife. The next roamer was faster, and managed to grab hold of her injured shoulder, and she cried out angrily as the roamer sent them both tumbling to the ground.

Mary Katherine let out a gasp as her head connected with a sharp rock, her vision immediately beginning to blur upon impact. The walker was on top of her, but she managed to keep it at bay with her sword, clutching it tightly at each end. The sharp blade began to quickly cut into the tender flesh of her palms, but it acted as a barrier between her and the dead man desperately trying to sink his teeth into her throat. She struggled with all her might against the creature, but the corners of her eyes continued to darken rapidly as her head felt as though it had been set on fire. To make matters worse, she felt her injured arm begin to give under the pressure as it throbbed painfully. In those moments with the walker's face only inches from her own, Mary Katherine was certain that she was going to die. A million thoughts raced through her mind as she felt her muscles tremble from the strain. _God, please look after Sophi_ e.

But the inevitable sinking of teeth into flesh and the crunching of bone didn't come, instead, the walker went rigid on top of her, its black blood trickling down onto her face. It was only then that she recognised the arrow sticking out from directly between its eyes. The thing gurgled miserably before giving one final heave, collapsing lifelessly on top of her. Mary Katherine choked hoarsely as the weight began to press heavily against her chest. The man came into her line of vision, but she was barely able to make out his outline as patches of bright colours danced before her eyes. She felt at once the roamer's body being lifted off of her own, it was a relief as she breathed deeply, trying to restore as much air as possible back into her lungs. But as the adrenaline quickly began to fade, the full extent of the pain she was experiencing began to rear its ugly head.

"Hey, hey, you aight?" she heard the man address her, his voice distorted, as if speaking through a toy megaphone. He tried to haul her to her feet, and when the man finally had her standing, his heart began to race as he removed his hand from the back of her head, only to find it coated in sticky red blood. "Shit", he hissed as Mary Katherine stared at him oddly, slightly swaying from side to side and blinking rapidly, was his hair always a bright shade of blue? Her gaze reverted back to the car, through what dimly lit vision she had left, she could see her little sister staring helplessly at her, mouth agape and tears streaming down her cheeks. "Sophie", she slurred and managed to stumble forward. She could do no more as her body finally betrayed her, eyelids falling shut and her whole body collapsed.

Daryl managed to catch the bleeding girl before she hit the ground, one arm tightly held around her waist as he tried to keep her upright. As well as her injured shoulder, both her head and hands were bleeding profusely. He was at an utter loss at what to do, as he stood there in shock holding the unconscious girl. He couldn't fine rightly just leave her there, even if she was some stuck-up pain in the ass, especially not with the kid. He glanced nervously over at the car, an old beat up red Cadillac, big blue eyes stared back at him, the little girl watched him like a hawk. Daryl felt wracked with guilt, clearly the girl knew how to hold her own against geeks, had it not been for the injury that he had inflicted on her, she wouldn't have been in such a bad state. And now, he felt like the pair of them was his responsibility, and that's something he couldn't handle. "C'mere kid", he called to the little girl, but the child frantically shook her head before ducking down from sight. "Son of a …" he trailed off in frustration, he needed to get this damn woman help before she bled to death in his arms, but he couldn't well leave the kid there by herself. He glanced down at the unconscious girl, her red hair sticking to her face with the geek's blood, hell, she looked like a geek. All skinny and pale and covered in blood, she didn't look right. "I don't need this shit", he huffed to himself as he bundled the girl into his arms and carried her over to the car. He wrapped his hand loudly on the window, he could see the girl curled up, hiding beneath a light pink blanket. "Come on now kid", he urged her, his panic rising as he felt blood begin to dampen his shirt.

"No!" the little girl cried, "Merricat says not to leave the car no matter what". Daryl looked at her quizzically and gestured with a nod of his head to the woman in his arms, "Is Merricat?" he questioned.

"Yeah".

"She your mom?" he pressed further.

"No!" she huffed, "My mama's in heaven with daddy and Ashley. She's maw sister".

"Well your sister is hurt real bad, I need ta get her to people who can help but am not leavin' you here by yourself", he told her firmly.

"But Merricat says –

"Merricat's bleedin' into my shirt right now!" he interrupted the little girl, losing his temper, it was difficult for a grown man to argue with the logic of a five-year-old. The child winced at his harsh words, but looked on at her sister, she looked like her mama when her daddy carried her from the house. Not wanting her sister to go to heaven as well, she slowly clicked open the car door, and cautiously stepped onto the dry grass. "Aight, you follow me now, gonna get you an' her back to ma camp", he instructed the child.

"Aren't you so rude!" the little girl exclaimed, "Aren't you going to make no proper introductions? Daddy always says a gentleman should introduce himself to a lady". And she folded her arms the way any cross child would, refusing to take another step before he complied. Daryl couldn't help but glare at her in both shock and annoyance, hell was wrong with that kid?

He grunted, "Ma name is Daryl, there you happy?"

"Your last name too!" the little girl complained, and Daryl simply gritted through his teeth, "Dixon".

The child beamed with a large toothy grin, as if totally unaware of her sister's dire situation, "Well Mr Dixon, maw name is Sophie Cordelia DuBois, and that there is maw sister Mary Katherine Collette DuBois", and she gave a little curtsy, "pleasure to make your acquaintance". Daryl couldn't even fathom a response, he had grown accustomed to the timid Carl and Sophia, both of whom he had extremely sparse interactions with, this kid was evidently going to be a thorn in his side. "Aight now you have your introductions now let's get a move on", he replied, knowing damn rightly that every second they wasted could be another nail in the broad's coffin, and he damn well sure wasn't gonna be left with a kid hounding him like a lap dog. Daryl began to lead them back through the woods, knowing the truck wasn't parked far away. But Sophie stopped dead in her tracks, gasping loudly. "Wait!" she exclaimed, and dashed back to the scene of carnage. She frantically scanned her eyes over the blood-soaked ground littered with corpses, until she found what she was looking for. She picked up her sister's sword, walking carefully back to Daryl's side. "We couldn't leave without this!" she told him, "It's real special to Merricat, she'd be so sad if she lost it".

He carried Mary Katherine to the truck borrowed from Shane, his own pick-up being worked on by Dale. He'd spent two days tracking that damn deer, planned on using the truck to haul it back to camp. He was sure that he would be able to pick up the trail again if he was quick enough, all he had do was drop off the damn broad and let her and the kid be somebody else's problem. Daryl lay her down across in the backseats, her long hair spilling around her and cascading to touch the ground. For a moment he feared that she was already dead, but his fears were soon put temporarily to rest when he saw the small, shallow rise and falls of her chest.

"Can I sit up front with you?" Sophie pleaded, batting her big blue eyes, "Merricat always lets me sit up front with her".

"Wouldn't ya rather sit back ere' with your sister?" he replied gruffly, not particularly wanting the child's company.

Sophie looked at her sister wearily, "She looks scary, with all that blood…", her demeanour instantly changed, as she clung to the loose ends of his shirt, "Please Mr Dixon, a promise a won't be no trouble sir".

Daryl looked down at the little girl clinging to him, goddamn the little urchin, "Aight aight, you can sit up with me if ya keep your mouth shut".

Sophie smiled, and hugged his waist tightly, Daryl grimaced at the contact, half tempted to shake her off, "C'mon now, last thing a need is your sister dyin' back ere' and stinkin' up the upholstery".

"No sir", Sophie smiled, "Is your camp like a summer camp? Merricat told me bout a summer camp she used to go to every year and –

"You forgettin' the no talking rule a 'ready?" Daryl silenced her, and the girl quickly bowed her head in a sheepish manner, her face going bright red. He allowed himself a small but fleeting smirk, and immediately put the car in drive, speeding like a maniac the whole way back to camp. It wasn't as though he had to worry about speeding tickets anymore, fuck, not as if there was a police force, hell a government around anymore. One perk of the apocalypse, total and utter freedom.

The sun was still high in the sky when they finally drove into the compounds of the camp. Daryl glanced around to see the people that had become extremely familiar going about their daily duties. Carol was by the make-shift washing stand, Dale on the roof of the RV, Lori crouched beside the cooking pot, Carl not far from her side. They all turned and stopped when they heard the truck pull up through the sloping mounds of grass, parking abruptly. He saw Lori wipe her hands on her jeans and approach him quickly, immediately freezing when she saw the child. "What in the name of…" she trailed off upon seeing the body in the backseat. Lori's eyes went wide, and she bounded forward, "What the hell Daryl?" she gasped, who in turn just shrugged in response. Sophie beamed up at the friendly looking woman, "You're real pretty", she smiled, "Mr Dixon says you're gonna stop Merricat from going up to heaven with mama".

Lori's mouth fell agape, trying to process what the little girl had just said to her, she looked frantically around the camp, "Shane, Dale!" she shouted, "We need some help over here!" She turned around to face Daryl again, "What in the name of God happened out there?" she asked him.

"Found ese' two out in the woods. Sisters or some", he opened up the truck door to better inspect Mary Katherine, "Is' one is hurt real bad".

"Is she bit?" Lori exclaimed, fearing the worst.

"Naw, but she bashed her head real good", he informed her rather nonchalantly.

"You idiot!" Lori snapped, "Why would you let her pass out if she hit her head, she could have a concussion!" Daryl once more simply shrugged, he had unloaded his burden, he had gotten the girls safely to the camp, they were Lori's, or whoever the hell else wanted to stick their nose in, problems now. Shane came jogging forward, Dale swiftly on his heels. "What's wrong, what happened?" Shane immediately went to Lori's side, fearful that she had been in some kind of danger.

"We need to get this girl inside the RV and get her patched up, Daryl brought them here from the woods", Lori informed him quickly, and Shane gave her a nod of acknowledgment, immediately going to the side of the truck to scoop Mary Katherine into his arms. "Dale, get the medibag, and get Carol and Andrea to help you", he told him, and then glanced anxiously down at the little girl. "Is maw sister gonna be okay?" she asked him softly.

"Course she is honey", Lori smiled, kneeling to meet the girl's eyes. "We're going to take good care of your sister. You hungry darling? How bout we rustle you something to eat?" Lori's maternal instincts were immediately kicking in, she glanced up at Daryl, "You did a good thing bringing them here", she told him, her voice gentle with kindness. Daryl felt a sense of embarrassment, not knowing how to approach the compliment. "Was nothin" he muttered, electing not to tell them of the hole in the girl's shoulder that he had caused. Wasn't any of her business anyhow. "Am'a go back out to see if a can pick up that deer's trail again", he told her as he watched Shane carry Mary Katherine off towards the RV, Sophie had flocked to Lori's side, delighted to have such a motherly figure to dote on her. Lori nodded, even though she thought it better if Daryl stayed at camp, neither he nor his brother Merle ever listened to anything that the group members had to say, bar Shane of course. It would be pointless to try and convince him otherwise. "Be safe", she said, holding onto Sophie's hand.

"A hope you get your deer Mr Dixon", Sophie smiled, "And come back soon, maw sister will wanna thank you when she wakes up". Somehow, he doubted the likelihood of that, in fact Daryl began to feel a slight instance of panic, what would the girl be like when she woke up? Hell, why did he care? He saved the bitch's life, they were squared up rightly as far as he was concerned. He just hoped that all the commotion that the broad had caused didn't make the deer go far, cause he was gonna be real pissed if the trail had gone cold. Lori ushered Sophie away, and Daryl watched on a moment. He could see Sophie skipping as if Lori was about to take her out for some ice cream, not taking her to scrounge minimal rations in a makeshift camp in the middle of the goddamn apocalypse.

"What a weird ass kid", he muttered to himself, and with a shake of his head, Daryl put the whole situation behind him. He was about to hop back inside the truck but reconsidered when he glanced at the bloodstained seats. "Might attract some geeks", he mumbled, but saw something flicker in the afternoon sun. Daryl narrowed his gaze, and pent down quickly to pick up an object that had become wedged between the two seats. He pulled it out, it was a small golden cross, hanging on a light chain. He stared at it for a moment as it glittered in the light. He looked back towards the RV, must belong to the broad. He shrugged his shoulders, stuffing the fragile necklace into his back pocket. "Be quicker on my feet anyhow", he reaffirmed to himself, and took off in the direction of the woods, and disappeared from sight.

 _Three days later_

Pain. Immeasurable pain. Throbbing. Pulsing. Banging to the beat of an erratic drum. Mary Katherine reluctantly opened her groggy eyelids, which felt like they weighed a ton weight. She looked up to see a stained cream roof, stained slightly yellow with cigarette smoke. There was light, coming in from somewhere, it hurt her eyes. She tried to raise her hand to shield them, but she couldn't manage it. Every fibre of her body ached. Her memory was hazy. A prayer … Blue Hair … Blood … Roamers … "Sophie!" she cried out, as the memory of what happened came flooding back to her. Mary Katherine lurched forward, but regretted it immediately, she couldn't gage what hurt more, her head or her right shoulder. She cautiously moved her fingers to her forehead as she groaned, but felt something scratchy, was that a bandage? She then looked down at her own hands, both of which were bandaged up neatly around the palms, the same went with her shoulder, where the hell was she?

"Well, looky here", she heard a man speak, and she froze, an older man approached her, dressed in a white shirt and accompanying hat. "Well, welcome back to the land of the living darlin", he smiled down at her, "We didn't think that you were gonna pull through for a while there".

"Where am I?" Mary Katherine asked him, her throat dry and hoarse.

"Easy there, first how bout some water", he offered her a canteen from a small table, and she took it gladly. The moment the water touched her lips, Mary Katherine felt relief wash over it as she began to gulp it like it was the last thing she would ever drink in her life. She chugged down the entire contents of the canteen within seconds, never stopping for a breath. "Take it slow girl", the man laughed lightly, "Don't want you drowning yourself now that we've finally got you awake".

Mary Katherine gasped as she finally handed him back the metallic bottle, "How long was I out?"

"Three days", the man informed her, and her eyes went wide, three days. "I was travelling with a little girl", she started to ramble in a panic, "Small, blonde hair she's –

"Little Sophie?" the man laughed, "Don't worry she's fine, settled in really well while you were restin' up in here, everyone in camp has really taken to that sister of yours". Mary Katherine exhaled a breath she didn't even realise that she was holding in utter relief. "I'm sorry, Merricat, isn't it? I'm Dale by the way, I'm the one who patched you up after Daryl brought you here".

Daryl? Mary Katherine thought long and hard before a light clicked in her brain, "That the name of the son of bitch who shot me?" she hissed, old anger reigniting to the surface.

Dale's face dropped, as well as his jaw, "He did what now?" he exclaimed, clearly taken aback by the revelation. Mary Katherine growled, and tried to stand up, but failed miserably as the pain in her shoulder commanded her otherwise. "Easy now girl", Dale tried to soothe her, "Don't want you to try running before you can walk. I don't know what that Dixon boy has done, but you were banged up pretty bad, had to improvise some stitches in the back of your head and on your hands", he told her gently.

The memories swirled within her brain, the roamers had attacked their camp, she'd fallen, used her sword, oh God, did that man, Daryl, actually help her? She cringed at the thought. Mary Katherine shook her head, "I want to see my sister now", she told him.

"Are you sure you don't want to rest up for a bit, you still seem pretty out of it", Dale suggested, but he could tell just from the look on her face that she was having none of it. "Alrighty then", he smiled, "half the camp's dying to meet sleeping beauty anyhow".

Dale offered Mary Katherine his arm for support, which she took wearily. She was thankful for all the help, hell for saving her life, but in the new world order, people didn't exchange niceties unless they expected something in return, at least, that is what she had experienced so far. Dale led Mary Katherine from what she found to be a decent sized camper van, bringing her out into the blinding Georgian summer sun. Outside she found large numbers of people going about what appeared to be daily life, mending cars, doing washing, cooking by a fire, it almost looked, mundane. "Hey everyone", Dale announced with a grin, "Look who's up and walking!" Mary Katherine was surprised to find it was mostly women, the closest to her, a woman with long brown hair, approached her with a warm and inviting smile. "Well this is sure to perkin' up everybody's spirits", she smiled, extending out her hand, "Hi, my name is Lori, Lori Grimes". Mary Katherine took the hand graciously, "Good to meet you, my name is –

"Merricat", Lori finished with a small laugh, "Sorry, yes we know, little Sophie's told us all about you". Mary Katherine's cheeks reddened slightly at the old nickname, one she was once happy to adorn, it just seemed childish and out of place to her now, "actually it's", she stopped herself, thinking quickly, if Sophie had become friendly with everyone in this survivor's camp, this was probably the name that they would know her by. She sighed and threw her hands in the air, "To hell with it, Mary Katherine's such a mouthful anyway". Lori laughed as three other women approached them. The first seemed rather timid, with cropped grey hair, but a kind face, "Hi there Merricat", she greeted, "I'm Carol". Merricat smiled in response, taking her hand as well. The two blondes came forward next, "Nice to finally meet you conscious", the woman smiled, "I'm Andrea, and this is my sister Amy". Merricat nodded to them both, feeling slightly overwhelmed, it had been a while since she had been around so many people, living people, at the one time.

"Well I think that's enough introductions for now", Dale laughed with a hand clapped over her good shoulder, "how bout some grub, I'm sure you must be starving and –

"Merricat!" Dale was interrupted by the familiar voice that she had been so desperate to hear. Lori moved to the side to reveal Sophie standing amongst another two children, her face could barely contain her large smile as she bolted towards her big sister. Merricat grinned as she met her sister with open arms, clasping her in a tight embrace, ignoring the influx of pain that it caused her body, it was worth it, just to have Sophie back. "I thought a might lose you", Sophie sniffled, tears brimming in her eyes as she buried her face into the crook of Merricat's neck. "Sh sh sh, it's okay now baby girl, I'm here now, you aren't ever going to lose me", she reassured her as she alternated between rubbing her back soothingly and patting down her golden hair. She broke away from the hug to hold her little sister's face in her hands, wiping away her tears with the pads of her thumbs, "Hush now, everything's alright".

"I know, I know", Sophie smiled, "I ain't crying cause am sad, I'm crying cause I'm so happy that you're okay".

"I know baby", Merricat grinned, "I know". She looked up towards the group that had gathered around them, she cleared her throat, trying to muster up the right words. "I'd like to thank you all, for everything, you've done more than anyone for me and my sister".

"Don't you worry about it", Lori assured her, "You just keep settled until my husband and the other men get back, then once he's here we'll sort out some proper arrangements for you and little Sophie there".

"Arrangements?" Merricat asked, anxiety rising, perhaps they did expect something in return for their help and shelter.

Lori smiled, "Getting you guys a tent, sorting out supplies for you both, to make sure, if you're going to be staying here we want to make sure you've got everything you need".

Merricat's eyes widened, taken aback, "Are, are you offering?"

"No", Lori corrected her with a small smirk, "I'm telling. You think we'd let you two go back into that world by yourselves – and besides, I shudder to think what we would do without Miss DuBois over there". Sophie smiled proudly, gazing up at her sister. "Oh, please say we can stay Merricat, please, oh please, I like it here!".

Merricat knew it was a lot to process, but, food, shelter, safety in numbers, and they seemed like good people, it could be a good place for Sophie to live in, to grow up in. She looked to Sophie, then Dale, then Lori, "If you'll have us".

Lori grinned, "Of course". Merricat silently thanked God for the drastic change in her luck. She had never been opposed to joining a group, one just hadn't presented itself. Sophie squealed in delight, practically skipping back to the other children, "You hear that, I can stay!" she cried cheerfully. Merricat watched on in relief, her hand resting wearily on her shoulder, her mind wandering to the man who had caused on all the damage in the first place. Daryl. Perhaps the one downside to remaining in the camp, she would have to live and operate in the same place as that brash, rude, redneck hillbilly. The thought made her shudder, but she knew it couldn't be helped, besides, she'd tolerated worse in her life. She sighed, slipping her hand from her shoulder instinctively to her jeans, expecting to feel the cool leather of her scabbard, but quickly realised that it was gone. She quickly looked down, hell, all her clothes were gone. She was wearing a massively oversized t shirt, and jeans that were two sizes too big, held up by a thick belt. "What the hell?" she uttered, and Lori turned to face her, "Oh, yes sorry, you really were in a rough state when you got here. We had to get your clothes off to get them washed", she apologised.

"And my sword?" Merricat asked speedily, to hell with her clothes, her weapon was like an extension of herself, if it had been left behind, she couldn't even bare to bring herself to consider it.

"Relax", Lori assured her, "It's in the RV". Merricat smiled, and headed towards it immediately, she didn't feel at peace until she had lifted her crudely fashioned scabbard from the table and was fixing it to the borrowed belt. She breathed a long sigh as she felt the weapon in her hands, it's cold steel acting as a comfort to her. She returned it to its rightful place at her side, and the feeling of ease washed over her. For the first time in a long time, it felt safe to breathe loudly.

The day slipped away from them, Merricat immediately made herself busy within the camp, not letting her extensive injuries slow her down. She wanted to find some way to repay their overgenerous kindness to both her and her sister. She bounced from helping Andrea, Amy and Carol with the mounds of clothes that needed washing, to tinkering with tools in the RV alongside Jim and Dale, finally ending with helping Shane take apart and clean the little rifles they had. They worked away as overhead the merciless Georgian sun finally began to set for the evening, making light conversation with each other.

"Damn, you sure know your way around a rifle", he commented playfully as Merricat fixed the sight of the .308 Winchester with a screwdriver borrowed from Dale.

"My daddy liked his hunting", she told him casually, "And my brother used to faint at the sight of blood, I was the only option for long trips. I had a rifle just like this, a few pistols too".

"Ah didn't know folks from New Orléans were big on huntin" it was a simple comment, but it immediate spiked her curiosity.

"How did you know that I'm from New Orléans?" she asked wearily, and Shane smiled, "Your accent gives you away, hell, I knew it from the moment I met your sister".

"My mother was from the French Quarter", Merricat confirmed, "but my daddy was from Lake Charles. We used to spend alotta time there over the summer".

"It'll be good to have another person who knows how to handle a gun", Shane confided in her, "Ah don't mean it offensively, but most of the women here, some of the men even, well, they ain't exactly acquainted with these kinds of things, they can't handle themselves against walkers".

"They've probably had no cause to pick up a gun in their lives – or to learn how'ta fight, it's not their faults that they didn't anticipate the apocalypse", she countered coolly.

"True, but it's still an advantage to have another fighter, with the few fighters that we have. Daryl told us that you were good at takin' out walkers". Huh, Merricat was surprised at that last statement, "but one hell of a lousy hunter", Shane added with a smirk. Merricat gave a loud snort and an over exaggerated role of her eyes as a response.

"If y'all are from New Orléans, what are yah's doin' out here in Georgia?" Shane asked as Merricat handed him the polished gun, she felt a slight tensing in her stomach, but she bade it away, it was a harmless question, she needed to relax. "We was in here visiting relatives when all the chaos broke out", she answered calmly, like reciting lines from a script, "Heard Atlanta was set up as a safe zone by the military, by the time we got there it as a'ready overrun".

"It was bad", Shane agreed grimly, "Everybody flocked to the city, not knowin' what was comin', they was all just more fuel to the fire, all em' refugees, city went to shit within two weeks".

"Yeah, I saw, wish a didn't. Sophie an' I had too many close calls, barely got outta there by the skin of our teeth", Merricat thought back to the nightmare that had been there brief stay in Atlanta, it was not something she ever wanted to put Sophie through again.

"Shane, Merricat!" Lori called to them from the fire, "Supper's on! Get it while it's hot!" The girl looked up from the rifle, it practically glowed in the fading light, she felt proud of her work, and happy to help with any maintenance that she could. "Come on girl", Shane laughed, giving her a light clap on the back, "We wait too long, and we'll be left with just the bones to chew on!" The pair made their way over to the now assembled group.

They tucked in to a fish fry up, curtesy of Amy and Andrea, who had been fishing long into the morning before Merricat had woken up. She settled in beside Sophia, who was already guzzling down her food. Dale passed her both a plate of piping hot food and a beer, which she took gladly. "Oh man oh man that's good", Shane relished, already wolfing his down. Carol smiled gingerly as she passed Merricat some plastic utensils, "Thank you kindly".

"It's no problem", she replied.

"This your little girl?" she gestured to the child closely next to Carol. "Yeah", she told her, "This is my daughter Sophia, say hello dear".

"Hello", Sophia smiled sheepishly.

"Well hello Sophia, it's a pleasure to meet you", Merricat added quickly, and the girl smiled up at her.

Merricat finally began to eat herself, savouring every molecule. Heaven help her, it had been so long since she had eaten a decent meal. She practically had to restrain herself from drooling over the plate. Many small conversations were taking place amongst the group, but next to her, Louis, one of the few men who had not ventured into the city, struck up a conversation with Dale. "Man, I gotta ask you", he began with a light smile, "It's been driving me crazy?"

"What?" Dale laughed, almost giving him permission to continue.

"That watch", Louis pointed to Dale's wrist with a fork full of fish, "I see you every day. Same time. Winding that thing like a village priest saying mass".

"I've wondered this myself", Jacqui added, "Unless I've misread the signs, the world has seemed to come to an end – at least hit a speed bump for a good long while".

"But then there's you, every day", Louis summarised, "winding that stupid watch".

"Time", Dale asserted, "It's important to keep track, in'it? The days at least. What do you think Merricat", he turned to the girl, "back me up here".

"I don't know about that", she said with a gulp, "Time was invented by humans, wasn't it? As far as the rest of the world is concerned, it's just day and then night".

"I like, what a father says to a son", Dale went on, "when he gives him a watch that had been handed down – generations – he said: I give you, a mausoleum, of all hope and desire, which will fit your individual needs no better than it did mine, or my father's before me. I give it to you, not, that you may remember time, but that you may forget it, for a moment, now and then, and not spend all of your breath trying to conquer it".

The whole group fell into a contemplative, but content silence.

"You are so weird", Amy finally blurted, and everyone began to chuckle lightly, Merricat included.

"It's not me", Dale tried to defend himself jokingly, "it was Faulkner, William Faulkner".

"I never cared for Faulkner", Merricat mused quietly, "Hemmingway was much more poetic".

Dale raised his eyebrows, "Another intellectual", he grinned, "finally someone I can have a meaningful conversation with", he received a few playful glares for that comment, "Probably my bad paraphrasing anyway".

They all began chuckling once more, and Amy rose from her seat by the fire. "Where you' going?" Andrea asked, her voice expressing the same concern often heard in Merricat's when addressing Sophie, the voice of an older sister.

"I have to pee", Amy replied, "Jeez, try to be discreet around here".

Merricat laughed, taking another swig of her beer, she secretly enjoyed it more than the food. It had been an age since she'd relished in such a luxury. Sophie nuzzled in close to her side, eyelids drooping as she gave a loud yawn. "I think someone is getting tired", Lori mused, her heart melting at the sight.

"No am not", Sophie protested through a yawn, "Am just restin maw eyes".

"And using my hipbone as a pillow", Merricat quipped as she sat down her beer and ran her fingers through Sophie's hair, allowing her to huddle in closer to her for comfort. The group settled down as everyone finished their dinner.

"We're out of toilet paper!" Amy called suddenly, standing at the door of the RV.

Merricat looked up from her sister, and her throat constricted as she saw what was happening. Within seconds, a roamer came from the trees, immediately grabbing Amy by the arm and sinking it's teeth into her flesh. She gave a shattering scream, and everyone turned to the source in horror.

In one, split second, chaos erupted. The women began screaming as walkers poured out from the trees. Everyone jumped to their feet. Merricat acting quickly, she grabbed Sophie up, holding her at one side as she drew her sword. Shane began instantly firing into the night as the group began to scramble and disperse.

"Merricat!" Sophie cried out in fear, clutching her sister desperately. "Take her!" Merricat barked to Lori, who instantly grabbed the child from her, holding both Sophie and Carl desperately close. Merricat ran to Shane's side. "Everyone get back!" she called, and turned to Shane, "You cover me, bring down as many as you can", and Shane's eyes went wide, "Merricat don't!" But he was to late to stop the determined girl was she bounded forward, sword raised in a guard position. Two walkers attempted to grab at her, but she hacked them both to the ground within seconds. Confusion erupted as the women screamed and tried to flock to safety. Merricat was utterly ruthless at taking down as many roamers as she could, but there was simply too many, and they were surrounded. Lori could find no hidden spot, no safety, and so she led herself, Carl and Sophie back to Merricat and Shane.

"Shane, Shane what do we do?" she pleaded in terror, only able to watch on helplessly as Shane continued to fire off rounds, and Merricat continued slashing and cutting, corpses falling all around her. Dale had picked up the .308 Winchester, and began firing alongside them. The screams of the bitten and the dying rose into the night air. It was a blood bath, a massacre, and they were right in the middle of it with nowhere to run. Merricat was encircled, but try as the roamers might, they couldn't bring her down. She dodged each clawing hand, each desperate bite, as she pierced every skull within cutting distance with the strong steel.

Once she was free to move, she ran back to Shane and the others, together they formed a wall for Lori, Carol and the children to move tightly together. "Everyone stay close, let's go!" he commanded, as he and Merricat cleared a path, killing every walker that came too close.

"Everyone get to the RV!" Merricat demanded, as she sliced the head of a walker that made a grab for Lori's arm. She kept frantically calling to Shane, begging him to tell her what they were going to do. Sophie cried desperately, watching the horror unfold before them.

The darkness of the camp was lit up with multiple rounds going off at once, Merricat looked up to see a group of men, headed by a man in a county sheriff's uniform, charge into the overrun camp. The only man she recognised, was Daryl. They managed to kill off the remaining walkers, and the Sherriff bolted forward, "Baby, baby!" he cried, and Carl ran forward, throwing his arms around him. Merricat immediately deduced that it was Lori's husband, Rick. The survivors of the attack, which were very few, began to scramble towards one another. Merricat turned, throwing her sword to the ground as she bundled Sophie into her arms. She was crying and shaking fiercely, and Merricat held her tightly, "It's okay, you're okay, it's all over", she tired to comfort her, but her own voice was cracking in fear and confusion as she panted heavily. "Merricat, Merricat", Sophie repeated over and over in fits of tears. She began to rock her gently in her arms, no child, should ever have to go through what she just did.

Merricat heard loud desperate wails, and she turned to see Andrea in floods of tears … next to the body of Amy. Even though she had barely known them a day, Merricat's heart felt heavy as she looked all around her, all was saw was a sea of grieving, terrified people, and the dead that surrounded them. "Amy, Amy, Amy, Amy!" she called over and over, unable to control her frantic sobs. Lori dropped to her knees, unable to handle the sight. It was gut-wrenching. In all that indescribable despair, Merricat was at a loss for words, everyone was clutching desperately at everyone else, anyone who was alive. Desperate for comfort, desperate for solace, desperate to feel life when faced with so much death. Sophie continued crying into her shoulder, and in the briefest of moments, Merricat locked gazes with Lori's husband as she held her trembling sister. He clearly didn't recognise her, they had yet to actually meet. But in that moment, they shared the same look in their eyes, of helplessness, but burden also. The burden of protecting their families. In that moment, they perfectly understood one another, despite being complete strangers. Merricat was drawn away as Sophie began to attempt to feebly lift her head as her cries began to quieten, "Don't baby", she tried to discourage her, a firm hand rested on the back of her head. "Don't, don't look alright? Just, don't look". Sophie sniffled and simply buried her head into the crook of her neck. "Just don't look", Merricat kept repeating, unable to think of anything else to say, "Just don't look".

 _ **Thoughts?**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Two**_

Merricat did not sleep that night, no one did, save for the children, who finally fell unconscious one by one, both physically and emotionally exhausted by the ordeal. The sun had risen, but it was still low in the sky, it hadn't woken up fully either. Sophie had fallen asleep in her arms and had stayed there for the rest of the night. It was only in the early hours of the morning, that Merricat carefully untangled the little girl, and lay her down inside the RV. Everyone was still shell shocked, wandering around the camp, lost in a daze. Andrea had not moved from Amy's side. She remained there, holding her dead sister's hand.

With the morning light, the gruesome task lay before the remaining members of the group; to dispose of the dead. Merricat watched on silently as Daryl rammed a pick axe through the skull of a half-decomposed walker. And once he was finished, she and another man, whose name she now knew to be Glenn, dragged the body over to the already burning pile. Rick approached them, placing a hand on Merricat's shoulder, "May I have a moment?" he asked her, his voice calm and respectful. She simply nodded in response as he pulled her over to the side. "I want to thank you", Rick began, speaking low, "We might have a lost a lot more people if you hadn't stepped up when you did, considering you haven't been with us long".

Merricat shrugged her shoulders, "Your people saved my life, and my sister's, am' indebted to you, besides, what was I supposed to do, stand back and watch innocent people be killed?"

Rick nodded, "Given everything, we haven't had the chance to be properly introduced, or to talk, Lori has told me a lot about you, Shane as well, and I saw you out there myself, you can handle yourself well".

"Like I said, I wasn't about to watch innocent people die", Merricat affirmed, "But I wanted to speak to you too, to thank you as well, for letting my sister and I stay with your group".

Rick wagged his head, "after last night, what you did, you both are apart of this group. You're _ **our**_ people now. Yours and Sophie's place is here". Merricat smiled sadly, and both she and Rick made their way towards the dying fire. "She still won't move?" Rick asked as he reached them, Lorri nodded her head, "She won't even talk to us, she's been there all night".

"We can't just leave Amy like that", Shane muttered, gazing into the faint tendrils of smoke emanating from the burnt logs.

"I'll tell her how it is", Rick announced, and proceeded to make his way over to Andrea. Merricat took the opportunity to turn to Lori, kneeling and placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "How you holding up?" she asked her, an expression of concern plastered across her face.

"I'm holdin", Lori sighed, dropping her head into her hands.

"And Carl?" Merricat continued.

Lori gazed up at her, "I, I honestly don't know, it's a lot to process for him", she confided in her.

Merricat nodded her head, understanding Lori's concerns, she had the same for Sophie. Rick clearly had no luck with Andrea as he backed away and began walking back to them with his tail between his legs. Just as he reassumed his place next to Lori, Daryl approached them, axe slung over his shoulder. "Y'all can't be serious", he objected gruffly, "let that girl hamstring us? The dead girl's a time bomb".

"What are you suggesting?" Rick growled, Merricat herself rose to her feet, already sensing where he was going with this.

"Take the shot" he advised, "Clean, in the brain, from here. Hell, I can hit a turkey between the eyes from this distance".

"You try it and see what happens", Merricat warned him, stepping forward boldly, "For god sakes she just lost her sister, she's grieving. Leave her be".

Daryl scowled at her, and turned directly to Rick, who in turn glanced to Merricat, and then again to Shane, it was clear that they were all in agreement, the situation with Amy had to be handled a lot more delicately than what Daryl was demanding. Rick shuffled on his feet, his decision to side with the others clearly etched upon his face.

Daryl picked up on it quickly enough and wagged his head disapprovingly. He stormed off without another word. It was the first Merricat had spoken to the man that she supposedly owed her life to. She had made a conscious effort of avoiding him, but with barely anyone left, it was hard not to interact with him. Merricat purposefully waited until Daryl was out of hearing distance before she turned her attentions to Rick, "I hate to admit it, but he is right. Amy is bit, she will turn, am not saying that we take his route, but we can't let Andrea stay like that for too long, she's in danger".

"I know, I know", he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers, "We'll deal with it, somehow".

Merricat watched T-Dog struggle with the body that once belonged to Louis Morales. She grimaced, but gestured over, "I'm going to finish up with the others", and quickly began to walk over. Daryl beat her to the mark, setting down the pick so as to help T-Dog haul the corpse over to the pyre. "Hey, whoa, wait, what are you guys doing?" Glenn stopped them. It was obvious what their intentions had been. Glenn glanced to the fire, "This is for geeks", he told them sharply, "Our people go over there".

"What's the difference?" Daryl grunted, "They're all infected".

"Our people go in that row over there", he repeated, his tone more serious, "We don't burn them!", he declared angrily, "we bury them, you understand?". Merricat sensed a fight brewing, but to her surprise, T-Dog and Daryl simply shared a look, before continuing to haul Louis' body in the opposite direction, over to the rows of their own dead. Daryl deposited the body carelessly, "You reap what you sow", he commented cruelly.

"Hey!" Merricat shouted, coming to Glenn's defence, "You stop 'at now, yah hear?".

Daryl furrowed his brow, storming off angrily, "Y'all left my brother for dead!" he snarled, voice bellowing throughout the silent camp, "You had this coming, and you", he pointed to Merricat, "A should'a left your skank-ass for them geeks, you and your lil shit for a sister". If there was ever a nerve to strike on Merricat, Daryl had just severed it, her face fumed in a rage as she stomped forward, and Daryl let out a dry laugh, "Well, whatcha gonna do now, how? Fuckin bitch thinks she's got balls", he sneered, but Merricat remained in a deathly silence up until the point that she was inches from him, and, rather than reply, she punched him squarely in the face, knocking him clean off of his feet. All movement in the camp stopped dead as everyone watched as the scene unfolded. "You arrogant, hot headed son of a bitch!" she threatened as Daryl fell to the ground, ready to tear him a whole new one. He immediately hauled himself to his feet, spitting blood on the ground, "You little cunt!" he roared as he began charging for her. It looked like the both were about to lock horns before Rick and Shane were alerted to the commotion. "Whoa, hey!" Rick yelled as both he and Shane ran forward, Rick grabbed her back before Merricat could do any further damage. "You both lost your minds? What's going on here?"

"Stupid bitch near broke ma jaw", Daryl bellowed as Shane put himself between them. "Easy now Dixon", Shane interjected, trying to defuse the situation.

"That redneck hillbilly just insulted mah sister", Merricat hissed in response.

"Both of you quit it!" Rick snapped, silencing the pair, he released his grip on Merricat, trusting her enough to stay settled for a moment, "You're both acting worse than children. We have the dead to fight already, we don't need to be fighting each other". Daryl breathed sharply through his nose, but backed away reluctantly, "Sick of this damn shit", he muttered, raking a hand through his hair. "I can't force you both to be friends", Rick continued, "But let's just be adults and be civil with one another, alright?". Merricat bowed her head in both shame and embarrassment, the outburst was totally uncalled for, especially considering the circumstances, people didn't need this sort of shit, not after what they had just been through. She gave Daryl a final glare before huffing in defeat, throwing her hands up in the air. Whilst the argument had broken out, no one noticed Jim beginning to struggle as he walked, all but Jacqui, who began questioning him, it wasn't long till she sussed out the cause of his fatigue. "A walker bit Jim!" she cried, breaking the tension that had settled amongst them, all eyes turned to them. Merricat felt her hand reach for the hilt of her sword instinctively as she and the others approached the pair.

The fight forgotten, it was Daryl who stepped forward first as he retrieved his axe, "show it to us", he demanded. The panic was clearly etched upon Jim's face, as he desperately clang to his shovel, "I'm okay!" he protested, "I'm okay, I'm okay". His feeble protests didn't stop T-Dog from grabbing him from behind, kicking the shovel away from him and locking his hands behind his back. "I'm okay, I'm okay", he continued to plead, but it fell on deaf ears as Daryl pulled up his shirt, revealing the bite. The whole group looked on, everyone knew what this meant, Jim, was a dead man walking. T-Dog released his grip and backed away, joining in with the others. Merricat felt a cool hand take hold on her own and looked down to see a tired Sophie gazing up at her, "What's goin' on?" she yawned tiredly, "We heard noises". Merricat's eyes went wide as she scooped up her sister, not wanting her to witness another grizzly scene. She felt petrified for a moment, Sophie could barely open her eyes, still half asleep, and clang to her tightly. "Jim", she told him gently, "How bout you go sit under the roof for a while, huh? Go get yourself outta the sun". Rick glanced over at her direction, unsure of what she was doing. "I'm okay, really, really I am", he continued to ramble, as she stepped forward with Sophie still clinging to her, "We know that", she soothed, "We're gonna figure this out, okay? You just go sit down for a while, you look just a 'bout ready to keel over", Jim rapidly nodded in agreement as she placed a light hand on his arm and led him away from the others. She hadn't liked the way most of the men had been looking at him, like he was nothing more than a stumbling roamer. As she returned, Rick gave her a nod, as if to silently thank her for alleviating the tension and managing to dissuade any further confrontation. Jim sat underneath the RV with his head hung low, Carol had volunteered to bring Sophie and the other children away to get them some lunch, whilst the others huddled together, trying to figure out what the hell they were going to do about Jim. "I say we put a pick axe in his head", Daryl, of course it was Daryl, was the first to speak, "And the dead girl's, and just be done with it".

"That what you'd want", Shane challenged, "If it where you?"

"Yeah", he insisted, "And I'd thank ya while ya did it".

"I hate to say it", Dale interjected sadly, "I never thought I would, but maybe Daryl is right". Merricat felt conflicted, she understood the danger that Jim now posed to them, but by heaven, he didn't choose this. "For god sakes he's sick", she quipped, hoping to be the voice of reason, "He's not a roamer".

"Yet", Daryl added, giving her a hateful look. Merricat felt her nostrils flare in anger, but she elected to ignore him.

"Merricat's right", Rick stressed finally, "Jim's not a monster, or some rabid dog. We start down that road, and where do we draw the line?"

"The line's pretty clear", Daryl glared, "zero tolerance for walkers", he then looked Merricat dead in the eye before adding, "Or them to be".

Merricat wanted to challenge him, she wanted to shout angrily right in his face, if he was _so_ against helping anyone who had even the _slightest_ chance of becoming a walker, then why had he helped _her_? There was no way in hell he could have been sure that one of the roamers hadn't bitten her, or scratched her at least, but still he brought her back to his camp. She wanted to sneer at him for being a hypocrite, but what was the point? More fights? And besides, he had already made it perfectly clear that he regretted his decision. Maybe he didn't want to make the same mistake twice.

"What if we could get him help?" Rick pressed on, "I heard that the CDC was working on a cure".

"I heard that too", Shane sighed, "I heard a lot of things before the world went to hell".

"Maybe it's still up and running", Merricat commented, trying to add a bit of hope, Daryl just snorted loudly to voice his disapproval.

Shane looked at her empathetically, but told her honestly, "Now _that_ is a stretch".

"Why?" Rick came to her defence, glad to have someone on his side, "If there's any government left – any structure at all, they'd protect the CDC at all costs, wouldn't they? I think it's our best shot. Shelter, protection, a rescue"

Rick and Shane continued bickering back and forth on the matter, disputing over the CDC or Fort Benning, which would be the better option. Merricat couldn't help but steal glances over at Jim, she couldn't imagine on what could be going through his head, he knows as well as everyone else, those puncture marks on his abdomen are a death sentence. Daryl also turned to glance at Jim, but his expression was of something else altogether. "You go lookin' for aspirin", he told them cynically, "Do what you need to do". It went unnoticed to everyone else, but Merricat could see Daryl riling himself up, and her stomach dropped as he predicted what he was about to do. "Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!" he shouted as he spun and charged to ram his axe into Jim's skull. Merricat unsheathed her sword, but Rick beat her to it. "Hey!" he growled, raising his gun to Daryl. "We don't kill the living".

Daryl clenched his jaw in frustration, "It's funny, coming from a man who just pointed a gun at my head", he spat.

"We may disagree on some things", Shane nodded, "But not on this, put it down now".

"Merricat", Rick spoke up abruptly, "Shane tells me you an your sister were travelling in a car together?"

Merricat gave him an odd look, "yeah", she affirmed.

"Much gas left?"

"Nearly a full tank", she replied.

"Travelling with any other weapons?"

Merricat couldn't see were he was going with the constant questions, but Shane read the expression on Rick's face, and was not happy in the slightest.

"Two pistols, a semi-automatic and a rifle", she answered him, "no ammo though, an' the rifle's trigger's jammed".

Rick nodded, lowering his gun away from Daryl, "Alright. I want you to take Daryl, go and get your car, and bring it back to camp".

Both Merricat and Daryl shared a look of disgust, ironically directed at one another. Her eyes went wide, "Excuse me?" she retaliated angrily.

"We're gonna be moving out soon", Rick assured her, "We need the transportation, and all the weapons we can get. We've got the ammo; those guns will be useful". He looked her directly in the eye as he spoke, and it finally clicked in Merricat's mind what he was actually asking of her. To get Daryl out of the way, to let him cool off before he did something stupid, and getting her damn car was the only plausible excuse that he could think of. She gritted her teeth, "Fine" she snapped, she would do it, but she didn't have to be _happy_ about it. With that she stormed off, at least wanting to see Sophie before she left, also, had she stayed a minute longer, she knew that she would have done or said something that she would regret later.

"You gotta be fuckin kiddin' me", Daryl objected, "Who died an made you king? I ain't going nowhere with that skank".

"I'm not sending her out there alone", Rick warned him, not particularly pleased with how Daryl was speaking about her.

"Fine en", he snapped irritably, "Send T-Dog, or the chinaman, hell _you_ go with her. I ain't putting my ass on the line for her, _again_ ".

"I need someone who can watch her back, you know the area already", Rick continued, managing to keep a level head, and walked closer to him keeping his voice low, "And besides, you, need to cool off". Daryl turned his mouth into a horrible sneer, before ramming his axe into the ground, muttering to himself as he walked away.

Merricat approached the logs that encircled the fire, she found Carol, Sophia, Carol and Sophie huddled together. "Merricat!" her sister greeted her cheerfully, "Miss Carol made us oatmeal, it's real good, have some!" Carol smiled at the girl who she'd clearly already taken a shine to.

"I'm alright baby", she told her, sitting down beside her, "Now honey, I've to go on a quick run alright? So, I want you to be good for Carol and Lori, you do everything that they say". Sophie's face dropped at the news, the corners of her lips quivering slightly, "But why, why do you have to go? We have everything here! Oh, please don't, last time you went the roamers came, an you got real hurt an –

"I have to baby, it's alright I won't be gone long", she tried to console her, "Am just going to get the car. Won't it be lovely to have it back? All your toys and books are still they, you could share em with Sophia and Carl, wouldn't that just be neat, huh?" Sophie still looked unconvinced, and Merricat sighed, rolling her eyes, "And besides", she said with a forced smile, "I'm not going alone, Daryl's coming with me". At those words Sophie's demeanour did a one-eighty as she smiled brightly, "Oh! You should have said, that's okay then, Mr Dixon takes care of you". It took all of Merricat's self-control not to snigger, instead she disguised it with a cough. The irony in Sophie's comment didn't go unmissed by Carol either, who ducked her head to hide her own amusement. "Well, ah you don't mind watchin out for her till I get back?" Merricat directed the question to desperately change the conversation.

Carol smiled, "Course not, we get on like a house on fire, don't we Sophie?"

"Sure do", she grinned, and continued on tucking in to her lunch. Merricat sighed and guess her head, "Be safe, I'll be back as soon as I can", she told her sister, and removed herself from the log. Merricat dreaded the trip, she positively couldn't stand the man. She went to find him, to get things over with as quickly as possible. Instead, she found Rick, he was walking out of the RV, looking exhausted with his hand scratching the nape of his neck. "You owe me for this Grimes", she told him sullenly, and he looked up at her, "I know, I appreciate it though, I wasn't lying neither, an extra car and weapons would go along way for getting us to the CDC in one piece".

"How is he?" Merricat asked, gesturing inside, already having deduced that the RV is where they had brought Jim to rest, it's where they had brought her after all.

"Bad", he confided. Merricat felt sympathy for the Sheriff, these sorts of things weren't easy, and it was clear he was having a tough time of holding it together.

"The CDC will be good for Jim, and for the rest of us too. I won't lie to you, I doubt very much that they have a cure, but at least", she sucked in a breath, "at least, he can be, be comfortable, before –

"Yeah", Rick finished with a nod, "I know. You be careful out there, I want the both of you back still standing, yeah hear?"

"Are you sure you want both of us?" Merricat joked, hoping to lighten his mood, "I mean, just the two of us, out all alone in the woods, no one would be none-the-wiser if Dixon happened to slip on my sword".

Rick chuckled with a brow raised high, "Hmm, if only".

Merricat gave him a smile, which immediately dropped as a certain hot-headed jackass came into her eyeline. Daryl had his crossbow slung around his shoulder, and two large hunting knives strapped to each leg, clearly, he was as eager to get the trip over with as she was. "Looks like that's my que", she sighed, and gave Rick a nod, "Don't burn the place to the ground while am gone, yah hear Grimes?" she smirked as she began to walk away.

"I'll try not to", he laughed lightly, feeling a little relieved, it was one thing left for him to worry about.

Merricat made her way over to Daryl, her good mood quickly disappearing with every step that brought her closer to him.

"You best not be a smartass out here", he forewarned her, "Or cause me any problems, ain't spending my whole damn day making sure that you don't get yourself killed".

Merricat rolled her eyes at the man, "Well fiddle dee dee!" she gasped sarcastically, "There's my entire day plan just thrown right out the window!" Daryl growled under his breath, but trudged on anyhow, "You coming or what?" he snapped back at her.

"And let you have all the fun?" she replied dryly but followed him nonetheless.

Some of the group members watched on as the pair disappeared from sight, Shane couldn't help but turn to Rick with a look of concern, "You do realise that they're going to kill each other out there, right?"

Rick scratched the nape of his neck, "Hmm, who knows, maybe it'll be good for the two of them to work out their issues".

"Or maybe it'll give him a second opportunity to stick her with an' arrow between the eyes", Shane warned him.

Rick stopped, looking his friend dead in the eye, "We already discussed this with him, and with Merricat. It was an _accident_. Yes, Dixon's a heard head, but he ain't a _murder_ ".

"You ain't known these Dixons long", Shane challenged him, "Yeah, Daryl's _only slightly_ more temperate than this brother, but yah saw how he was with you, with Merricat, an' Jim just now … and, you saw for yourself what _Merle_ was like, naw, wouldn't trust neither of them as far as a' could throw em". Shane left him with that, he, like the others, had plenty to do in helping to pack up camp. There was no time for dilly dallying. Rick however, hesitated for a moment, thinking on his friend's words of warning. It was true, Daryl's brother, Merle, had caused enough havoc to leave them know other choice but to leave him behind in the city. He'd also seen for himself how utterly ruthless Daryl could be as well, and things had not gone down easy when Dale, after patching up the unconscious Merricat, had informed them of the arrow-wound in her shoulder. It hadn't been what you would call a calm discussion. At the same time, Rick sensed that Daryl was a far cry from his brother, yes, he had injured a young woman, but he hadn't left her, or a little girl to die. He took it upon himself to bring them both to safety. It wasn't as if any of the group would have known if he had decided to leave Merricat and Sophie. And for that, Rick knew that he didn't have to be concerned over Merricat's safety with him, he understood where Shane had been coming from, he just didn't view the situation in the same light. For the time being, the safety of Merricat DuBois and Daryl Dixon was not something he had to worry about. Instead, he gazed up as he saw Lori emerge from the RV, this time, with Carol swiftly following at her heels. It was the first time that he had stepped foot outside since last night, and Rick was sure as hell glad to see it. He smiled and started making his way over to his family. _His family_ , he rolled the words in his mouth, still almost disbelieving that he had actually _found_ them. That they were alive, and together. That's a lot more than most could say, Daryl had lost his brother, Amy her sister, Carol her husband. Last night had devastated the camp, the CDC was their only option, he just had to get there, to keep his family safe.

They jogged in silence, Daryl in front whilst Merricat took up the rear. They were both hunters, trackers (although Daryl would most likely have some issues about that statement), they knew how to move quietly, how not to be found. The thick foliage of the trees overhead was a surprising but well-received relief, providing shade from the sun as they put mile after mile behind them. After roughly an hour and a half they came across a stream, and Merricat decided to seize the opportunity to rest for a few minutes. "Daryl!" she called ahead, and the crossbow wielding man turned to face her. "Let's stop for a minute", she suggested, and when she saw that he was about to protest, she raised her hand feebly to her right shoulder, "My shoulder is _killing me_ ". Daryl turned up his nose, but stopped anyhow, plopping himself down on a large rock. Merricat in turn removed her own bag, given to her by Dale before she left. She rummaged through, pulling out the canteen of water, she uncapped it carefully, taking a swig, then with half reluctance, but with reason, she outstretched her arm to hand it to Daryl. He stared at it as thought it was something alien, unsure of what to do. "What?" she jibed, "I don't have cooties, you need 'a drink some water before yah pass out". Daryl pursed his lips into a thin line and seemed to think for a moment, before taking the flask roughly from her. He drank rapidly, and Merricat couldn't help but allow herself a small smirk, _his stubbornness will get him killed_. Once finished, Daryl bent forward, refilling the canteen in the stream before handing it back to her. "Thanks", she nodded, tucking it back into her bag, if there was one thing you could say about Mary Katherine DuBois, it's that her mama didn't raise her without manners. Daryl merely gave an 'mph' as his response, as he rose back to his feet, "You ready ta go?" he asked her impatiently, "Or are you gonna keep makin' out like that _flesh wound_ on your shoulder is actually given yah problems". She rolled her eyes as response as she hauled herself up, "You better be careful now Mr Dixon", she told him, "Or else I'm gonna start thinkin' that you don't wanna spend time with me". He threw her a horrible glare, as he picked up his pace again. Merricat allowed herself a secret and victorious smirk as she followed en suite, pissing him off was starting to become fun.

They kept up a steady and quick pace, it wasn't long until they reached Merricat and Sophie's abandoned camp. However, to both their horror, a swarm of corpses had taken up residence in their absence. "Well, shit", Merricat hissed, the Cadillac was surrounded by roamers. They shuffled slowly, stumbling over the decomposing bodies that all ready littered the ground.

"I don't like this", Daryl commented, "We should jus' cut our losses an head back ta camp". Normally, Merricat would agree with the much safer option, but as she weighed, she shook her head in objection, "No", she whispered, "If they've come this far up from the city, en' they're headin' in our direction. We have to deal with ese' roamers before they get too close to camp. If they make it there before we leave we're done for, people can't take another hit like it did last night".

Daryl shot her a look, he knew that she was right, even if he wouldn't admit it. He remained silent, but quietly removed his crossbow, loading it with an arrow. "Take out as many as you can from here", she instructed him quietly, "Once we thin out their numbers, I'll take head an you cover me, okay?" Daryl wouldn't openly state that her plan was sound, but it was the truth whether he liked it or not. His crossbow was silent enough to pierce the heads of the roamers without drawing too much attention to themselves. Merricat didn't have to look to know what was going on around her, she just had to listen. The whistling of the arrow soaring through the air, and then a thud, repeat, over and over. It continued until only five arrows remained in his quiver, Daryl nodded towards her, it was time for Merricat to do her part. She drew her sword silently, a good few walkers remained standing, shuffling amongst one another. A silent prayer, and she rose to her feet. The walkers immediately honed their sights on this moving prey. She circled away from the car, rotating her sword in hand. "Come on you ugly bastards", she egged them on. The walkers began to trudge forward, if there was one certainty with the dead, they never moved faster than walking pace. She let them come to her at first. A slash, a thrust, a hit, and three fell already. She was elusive in her movements, balancing on the balls of her feet, nimble enough to slip in-between them and dodge their grabbing arms, she was a quiet killer, a predator. It was only once she had cleared a path for Daryl that she beckoned him to follow her. She had to trust, had to hope, that he had her back, or she was a goner, because the walkers also had one other annoying trait; strength in numbers. Daryl removed his large bowie knife and rammed it into the closest walker's skull. It took them minutes to finally put them all down, Merricat couldn't deny Daryl's strength, and his skill at dealing with roamers. Her mind echoed Shane's words to her, _with the few fighters that we have_ , it was clear that he was one of those small few. Merricat quickly found her keys that she had dropped the days previous, with her memory still foggy, it took her a while to properly retrace her steps. She felt slightly triumphant when she found them, and immediately headed over to her car, the first priority to check the contents of the truck. She smiled happily to see the familiar sights, even if her supplies weren't in great quantities. She heard Daryl grunt, and she diverted her eyes to see him busying himself in dealing with the dead. Merricat rolled her eyes as she continued to take inventory of her supplies. Slim in terms of the basics, half a litre bottle of water, a few protein bars, a jumbo tub of powdered protein shake mix, and a box of old animal crackers. She had two spare containers of gasoline, syphoned from cars long abandoned on the highway. Daryl continued to retrieve his arrows from the heads of the dead corpses, why not, it would be a terrible waste to leave them. "Looks like everything is still here", she shouted over to him, "A lotta this gas we can give to the others, I forgot I had it". She looked up as she closed the trunk of her car, "at least it's something". Her heart leapt as she saw a strangler walker, a horribly large and fat thing, stumble forward, inches away from Daryl, who was oblivious to its presence, and was instead occupied with attempting to prise an arrow from a walker's eye socket. "Daryl!" she exclaimed, picking up her sword and dashing forward. He realised to late as the walker grabbed onto his ankle, flinging him to the ground. Daryl tried to throw the thing off him, but it was clearly too large, too heavy, bloated from a fresh kill. Merricat dashed forward, picking up her sword from the ground and wielding it high. She had to stick it in the brain, but it's damn head was inches from Daryl's face as he held it off with his bare hands. She had to take the risk, or he was dead. "Duck!" she swung her sword, slicing the roamer's head in half in a diagonal cut. It remained intact for a moment before sliding from the bone, its whole body dropping to the ground. Daryl's face had been splattered with geek blood, but he was alive. Merricat put away her sword, outstretching her hand to him, "You okay?" He ignored both her concern and her hand, electing to bring himself to his feet on his own. The moment he had done so however, he growled bitterly and clutched at his arm. "Are you bit?" Merricat gasped in horror, fearing the worst, watching the fresh blood run like a river down the length of his arm.

"No", he snarled, "You fuckin sliced me", and he removed his hand to reveal the deep cut in his upper arm. It was cut right to the bone, the white of fat and muscle exposed. "Fuck", Merricat gasped, and walked forward, but Daryl backed away from her angrily. "What?" Merricat snapped, almost offended, "You think I did that _on purpose_? I stopped that roamer from mauling your face off". Merricat didn't like the amount of blood that he was losing, and from the looks of It, he would be needing a few stitches. Merricat huffed, brushing the hair from her eyes before walking back towards the trunk of her car, bringing out the bottle of water. "C'mere", she gestured to him. Daryl was hesitant, but finally conceded, stomping forward like a child after a tantrum. She unscrewed the cap of the bottle, "Move your hand", she instructed, and he did as she asked, albeit with great reluctance. Before he could protest further, she doused his arm in the cool water. It washed away most of the blood and clean out the wound. Merricat worked quickly, discarding the empty container. She reached down for her borrowed shirt that she adorned. She took the hem and began to tear at it, leaving her stomach exposed. Merricat began to carefully wrap the nasty cut with the makeshift bandage, tying it tightly. To her surprise, Daryl didn't grumble, whine or complain as she dressed his wound, instead, he watched on silently with an unreadable expression. "There", she pursed her lips, it looked clumsy, but it would have to do until she got him back to camp. "You're definitely gonna need a few stitches, but since Dale managed to patch ma' head up am sure they have all the right stuff to do the job".

He scowled in response, what was she expecting? Him to be fuckin grateful? He knew that damned woman was gonna give him grief, and once more he had been proven right. Fuckin Merri-whatever. Fuckin Rick Grimes. Daryl was absolutely sick to death with the lot of them. "At least it won't take us long to get back to camp now", Merricat interrupted the thick silence between them, "Come on", she made for the direction of the driver's side, and Daryl made a noise which can only be described as showing complete and utter contempt. Merricat glared at him, "What is it _now_?"

"You think am gettin' in a car with _a woman_ driving?" he sneered, "Fuckin a'ready near died once today".

Merricat stared blankly at him. She had no words, he was just so … him. There had to be some natural law, some genetic determinatives that prohibited such a man of being complied of such extreme stereotypes. In this day and age, it just couldn't be possible. She scoffed, trying to muster something, before raking a hand through her hair in defeat. "My Mr Dixon, just when a think a have you all sussed out … guess a can add _sexist pig_ to your resumé".

Daryl simply gave her a look that told Merricat that he didn't give a rat's ass about what she thought of him. He crossed his arms tightly over his chest, clearly expressing his refusal to budge on the issue. Merricat gritted her teeth. It could be so easy, _I tried Rick honestly, there was just so many of them, and Daryl. Daryl didn't listen! He charged forward, but his arrows didn't last him long … what a horrible way to go_ , she sighed instead. "Fine, fine!" she snapped, muttering curses as she marched to the passenger's side of the car, swinging the door open in anger before slamming it shut as she got inside. _Damn redneck hillbilly_. Daryl followed her in a sullen silence, throwing his crossbow carelessly onto the backseats before taking his own behind the wheel. _Fuckin chick car_ , he thought to himself as he glared disapprovingly at the red dream catcher and rose shaped air freshener that hung from the rear-view mirror.

To say that they made it back to camp in one piece was nothing short of a miracle, Merricat was sure that it had to have been divine intervention. And to think, he had the nerve to insinuate that _she_ was the bad driver? Her stomach had been doing flips the entire length of the journey, and Merricat was surprised that she managed to keep down the little breakfast that she had enjoyed that morning. It was a relief to see the camp, even more so to behold the progress they had made in packing up their belongings. They looked almost ready to go. She smiled as she saw Sophie beaming up at Rick, talking happily to the Sheriff. Everyone was alerted to their presence as the Cadillac roared into view, and Daryl put a slam on the breaks. Had she not been wearing her seatbelt, Merricat was convinced she would have went flying through the windscreen. Daryl exited the car as quickly as possible, retrieving his crossbow and heading off in the opposite direction of the gathering crowd. "Successful trip?" Rick greeted her with a smile, Sophie trailing at his hip.

"No one died and a didn't become a murderer in the process", Merricat joked in return, "So as successful as it could be". The Sheriff seemed relieved by their return, hell, everyone did. It felt as though everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief, for good reason, it's hard to feel at ease when two of the best fighters go off on their own, with no certain guarantee of returning. Nothing was certain in those days. "Can a get maw toys now?" Sophie pleaded in excitement, and Merricat simply nodded her head as permission. She squealed in delight as she bolted towards the car. "Rick, can I have a word?" Merricat asked, and she saw a look of worry flash upon his face. "Certainly".

She brought him to the side, "Daryl an' I had a run in with another group of roamers", she informed him quietly, "Headed in this direction".

"You lead them away?" he asked her.

"Better", she told him, "We put em all down. But if I was a bettin' woman, I'd put stakes on more of em coming this way. With no food left in the city, there's sure to be more here by nightfall. You think there's a chance of us shippin' out before then?"

Rick nodded, "Plan was to start movin' as soon as you two came back".

"Give it another hour", Merricat suggested, "Make sure that everyone has everything, don't need to be rushing and end up leavin' things behind. Be better keeping everybody calm, people make stupid mistakes when they're afraid".

Rick listened to what she had to say and found himself in agreement with the young woman. "You're right. I'll spread the word, we leave in an hour, no later. And a, I'll let Shane know, but other than that, let's keep the word on those walkers between us an' Daryl. Like you said, only serve ta cause havoc if it gets around camp".

"Couldn't agree more", She said, "I'll go find him now, let him know how it is".

"Thank you Merricat".

"No problem Grimes".

Merricat took off to first find Daryl, but then stopped herself, turning on her heels instead in the direction of her car. She removed one of the gasoline containers and headed to find Dale. He was of course, tinkering under the hood of the RV. Merricat glanced uneasily at the pool of blood that lay just outside it, all that was left of Amy's presence. "Well, Miss DuBois", he greeted her cheerfully, "Glad to see that you and Daryl didn't kill each other".

She smiled as she greeted the older man. "Give me time", she smirked before holding up the heavy container, "Brought you a present".

"It's not my birthday", he quipped with a smile.

"Mine either", she chuckled, "Take it anyhow", and she handed it to him. Dale studied it carefully, the potent smell giving away its contents. "Where'd yah get this?" he exclaimed.

"Had it in my car, with a full tank a gas a won't be needing it anytime soon", she explained, "besides, a owe you for patching me up, an for letting me shack up in the RV when I was out for it".

"It'll sure as hell go a long way in getting us to the CDC", he whistled, "Old girl doesn't exactly sip gas".

"A thought as much", Merricat smiled, "Also, a kinda have a favour to ask of you".

Dale raised an eyebrow as the young woman shuffled on her feet, "Member' how you said that y'all had to give me stitches in my hands and my head, you wouldn't happen to have any of those supplies left?"

Dale's look turned to one of concern, "They didn't burst, did they?"

"No", she replied quickly, "I may have, accidently, nicked Daryl while we were getting my car", she confessed almost bashfully.

Dale chuckled, "Guess that makes you both even, huh? Hang on, I'll get the bag", and with that he scurried inside the RV. She heard him speak some words to Jim, before finally coming out with a red duffle bag, "Now, we have all the cleaning supplies in here, antiseptic wipes, rubbing alcohol, saline solution and the needles, we just happened to not have any kind of thread…" he trailed off, and Merricat gave him a look, "So, we had to improvise". He rummaged his hand through the bag, retrieving a white cylinder-shaped tube. Merricat's mouth dropped once she saw clearly what it was. " _Tooth floss_?" she stated in shock.

"It works just as well", Dale shrugged defensively, "beggars can't be choosers".

Merricat looked at it momentarily, better than nothing, she supposed. "Guess I can't complain if it's holdin my head together", she said finally.

"That's the survivalist spirit!" he joked before handing her the bag, "Have fun trying to convince Daryl to let you fix him up. He's as stubborn as a mule when it comes to this sort of stuff".

"So, his whole chauvinistic jackass treatment isn't just for me then, and here's me thinking that I was special", she pouted, and she and the man shared a laugh.

"Go on now, you better get him patched up quickly, Rick says we're moving out soon", Dale informed her, but of course, Merricat already knew this. "Thanks again Dale, I'll bring this all back as soon as am done".

Now, with the medibag in hand, Merricat began the even more arduous task of seeking out Daryl. After consulting with Carol, she finally found the redneck hauling a number of supplies into the back of a pick-up truck. Her eye immediately locked on the black motorcycle that was strapped in the back, so he was a biker as well as a redneck. "Daryl", she hollered over to him, but he took no notice of the girl, determined to finish up as quickly as possible. She sighed, why was she even doing this? He wants to lose an arm to gangrene? Fine. She was about to turn to leave, but she couldn't force herself to take the first steps. Terrible images flashed before her mind, of Shane and Rick holding him down whilst one of the others, Dale most likely, or maybe even Merricat herself, having to hack of his arm. She shivered at the thought, and bit down on her lip, goddamn son of a bitch. She abruptly turned and walked quickly in his direction, "You shouldn't be lifting things with that arm of yours", she scolded him, "You could tear up the tissue more, or even a muscle". Daryl rolled his eyes as he lugged another heavy bundle onto his shoulder. Merricat growled, and placed a firm hand over his own, "You purposefully tryin' to hurt yourself?" she snapped, but it was clear that it was coming from a place of concern.

"I can handle myself", he bit back at her, shoving off her hand and tossing the bundle into the truck.

"Clearly you can't if you're willing to risk losing an arm just to prove a point", she hissed, and stood in front of him, forcing the man to meet her glare, and to stand in between him and his goddamn truck. "That arm needs looked at before an infection sets in".

"It's fine", Daryl menaced between his teeth.

"Oh really?" Merricat asserted boldly, "So it doesn't hurt when I do this?" and before he could so much as blink Merricat reached forward and pinched the tender area of his wound. Daryl's eyes went wide in both alarm and pain as he had to bite back a yelp. Instead he snarled like a rabid dog, clutching at the area. "You a fuckin psycho?" he demanded, agony pulsing through the length of his arm.

"No", she replied plainly, "Just someone who's tryn'a help you. I cut you to the bone, it needs to be cleaned and stitched up, and you're an idiot if you think that it'll get better otherwise". Daryl stared her down, and in that encounter, he decided that he unconditionally despised Mary Katherine DuBois. He hated her with every fibre in his being. She had become an unshakable thorn in his side since the moment he met the meddling woman. "Well it make you leave me the hell alone?" he finally proclaimed angrily.

Merricat smiled coyly, "You won't see hide nor hair of me for the rest of the day", still happy that she had finally got him to agree to her tending to the injury that she had technically caused. Dale hadn't been exaggerating, Daryl was a stubborn ass mule.

Since he adamantly refused to step foot near the RV, Merricat could see no other option than to work on him right there and then, with Daryl sitting rigidly on the hood of his truck. She couldn't describe the look that the man had given her once he had seen her thread the suture needle with a line of bright green tooth floss, and although she herself had serious issues with using it, it couldn't be helped. "Hey", she tried to joke, but it may as well have fallen on deaf ears, "Look at it this way, your arm is gonna smell minty fresh". Much like before, Daryl was surprisingly compliant as she went about her work. Sitting in a sullen silence, he barely so much as flinched as she removed the limp pieces of fabric from her shirt that had thus far served as bandages. Seeing it up close, it truly was a nasty cut. Merricat felt a pang of guilt hit her stomach, but she did her best to ignore it as she doused a few pieces of gauze with saline solution. "I won't lie, this is going to sting a bit", she told him, addressing Daryl with what must of have been the first time since meeting him, a kind and gentle voice. He never so much as flinched as she cleaned out his wound, the only visible signs of discomfort was the slight clenching of his jaw. She sighed as she made sure it was as clean as possible, rubbing it down tenderly with the antiseptic wipes. Now, that was the easy part over with. She felt hesitant as she stared at the needle in her hands. She had had the luxury of being unconscious when Dale had sewn her up, Daryl wouldn't be so lucky. "You might want to bite down on something", she told him honestly, "without anaesthesia, this is going to hurt. A lot". Daryl on the other hand simply ignored her, and she took his silence as permission to continue. To her amazement, and secret admiration, he didn't make a peep. He stayed still as slowly she punctured his flesh repeatedly in a neat line, being as attentive as possible. Once finished, she carefully bandaged him up. Merricat was quite proud of the finished result, and God be good, hopefully she had intervened quick enough to stop any kind of a blood infection. "There now", she smiled triumphantly as she packed away the remaining medical supplies, "That wasn't so bad, was it?" He muttered something incoherent, which Merricat believed was the closest thing he could muster to a 'thank you'. "Just, try an' stay off your arm for a good while, and I'll change the dressings in a few hours. Keep it clean and you should be good ta go". It was clear that Daryl wasn't exactly up for conversation, and so Merricat slung the medibag over her shoulder, ready to go and return it to Dale.

"Merricat where have you been?" she heard a little voice call to her, "A have been lookin for you everywhere". She turned to see Sophie looking at her with a putting expression. Her elder sister looked at her sternly, "Did I not tell you no wondering around camp? Why aren't you with Carol and Lori?"

Sophie went on unphased, "You were takin' too long", she huffed, but smiled when she saw Daryl, "Hiya Mr Dixon!" Her countenance taking a complete one-eighty as she bounded forward, throwing her small arms around him. He looked aghast at the unwanted contact, staring at the little girl like she had two heads and a tail. Merricat had to supress the laugh she was holding at the back of her throat, Daryl seemed utterly petrified of a small child. She broke away, completely unaware of his discomfort. "A made you somethin!" she told him with a bright grin, digging her hand into the pockets of her shorts. She pulled out what appeared to be a knotted bracelet, made from dyed brown material, on it hung a small wooden carving on an arrow head, it actually looked rather good. "Sophia helped me make it", she told him gleefully, and held the gift out to him on her hands. He stared at it, then up at Merricat, as if totally unaware what to do in the situation. Clearly, he had had very little contact with children pre-apocalypse. Merricat shot him a look, and she mouthed to him: _just take it_. He coughed uncomfortably and reached out to take the bracelet from her, but Sophie enthusiastically took hold of his wrist, and slipped it on him for herself. "There now, don't you look pretty!" Sophia smiled as she unconsciously mimicked the words often uttered to her by her sister. "Do you like it?"

"Uh yeah, thanks kid", he murmured, staring blankly at the thing on his wrist. Merricat finally decided to show mercy and save him from the situation, only after watching him squirm for a little. She ducked down and scooped Sophie up into her arms, "Come on now baby girl, we'll leave Mr Dixon alone now, alright? We have lots to do before we leave". The little girl clasped onto fistfuls of her sister's shirt, "Aw, do we have to?" she whined, "A wanna stay with Mr Dixon".

"He has plenty a work to be getting on with himself baby, come on now, I'll fix yah up a strawberry shake an you can work on your readin", Merricat told her sister softly.

"A'right", Sophie conceited, "Thank you again Mr Dixon for bringing us to your family, I really like it here". Daryl's discomfort only multiplied at the little girl's words, he couldn't exactly correct her, she was just a kid. Heck, a weird ass one at that, but a kid nonetheless, one that didn't mean no harm.

With that, Merricat began to walk away, Sophie still happy to remain wrapped up in her sister's arms, "See you later Dixon", Merricat called over her shoulder, "and remember, no heavy lifting!" She walked from his sight, and Daryl never felt more relief to have the troublesome pair gone. The kid was annoying as hell, and Merricat, she was just, _infuriating_. He glanced down at his freshly cleaned shoulder, then at the bracelet that now hung snugly on his wrist. It was clear from the intricate knots that a lot of time and effort had gone into it, he just didn't understand _why_. Why would the kid feel the need to give him something? He shrugged, and was prepared to take the damn thing off, but then Daryl quickly thought against. _I don't want to give that damn woman anymore reason to be bitchin at me_. He could at least finish packing up his truck, only some of the items belonged to him and Merle, the rest was provisions that clearly no one else had room for. His peace and quiet only lasted for so long, when out of the blew T-Dog approached him, was it the mission of every goddamn person in the group to piss him off? He was hauling a large duffle bag, "Hey, you got anymore room in that truck of yours?" he asked, and Daryl simply shrugged, "Toss it in the back", he told him gruffly.

"Merricat over here talkin to you?" he asked, and Daryl began to feel his irritation rise, he wasn't in no damn mood to be questioned, especially about that woman.

"She was here for a bit yeah", he answered dryly, "her an' that kid o' hers".

"She tell yah that Shane an' Rick wants to talk to us?" T-Dog continued.

"Naw".

"Well, they want to talk ta us bout the plan ahead, by the logs", he informed him.

It was utterly depressing to see how little people survived the massacre the night before, now that they were all huddled to together. Daryl hung at the outer area of the gathered circle, opting to stand rather than sit with the others. For a moment he glanced over at Merricat, who sat next to Lori with Sophie planted firmly on her knee.

"I've been thinking about Rick's plan", Shane began abruptly, drawing everyone's attention, he appeared to Daryl a little dishevelled, but he ignored it. Probably still on wide alert. "Look, there are no, ah, guarantees – either way I'll be the first one to admit that. I've known this man a long time, a trust his instincts. A say that the most important thing here is that we need to stay together. Those of you that agree, we leave in thirty minutes, okay?"

A silence fell over the survivors, Shane's words seemed to convince those who had remained uncertain about the plan to head for the CDC. In her heart, Merricat was convinced that all they would find there was a long-abandoned government building, nothing more. But, she knew that they needed to get on the move, because the roamers were. They were beginning to migrate and heading in their direction.

The final arrangements were made, Merricat had loaded up her car, made almost a nest for Sophie in the back seat. It would be late soon, and she could tell that the young girl had had her fill of excitement for the day. No one planned on staying behind, the camp was united in following Rick. They all gathered outside the RV, eagerly waiting for Shane and Rick to tell them the plan. Rick had already spoken to Merricat on his plan of action, despite only knowing her briefly, he seemed to already view her as a close confidant and valued her opinion and advice. After all, she had been surviving on her own relatively well before she had met up with her group, that and keeping a young child alive on top of that. She was sharp, smart, and knew how to handle herself. She had a lot more experience in dealing with this new world than he did. "A'right, everybody listen up", Shane announced, loudly and clearly enough so that everyone could hear, "Those of you with CB's, we're gonna be on channel forty. Let's keep the chatter down, okay? Now, you gotta problem, don't have a CB, or can't get a signal, or anything at all you're gonna hit your horn one time, and that'll stop the caravan. Any questions?"

No one responded, and so that was that. Everybody began loading into their respective cars. Merricat turned to Sophie, "You go on and get inside, I'll be with you in a tic baby", she told her, and Sophie did as she was told. Merricat approached Rick, who was taping a sign to Glenn's car, it had been sacrificed for parts for the survival of the much-needed RV, something that he was still sore on. Merricat read the sign quickly, _Morgan, headed to the CDC. This area is not safe – Rick_. She raised an eyebrow, "Who's Morgan?" she asked, startling him. Rik glanced back at the sign and sighed heavily, "A friend", he replied, "He helped me when a first left the hospital".

"A still can't believe you slept through the world going to hell", she smirked at him, trying to lighten the mood, Rick gave the girl a small smile, "Sometimes I still think that this is just some crazy coma dream", he admitted, "And that soon I'm going to wake up in a nice hospital bed".

Merricat laughed, and pinched the top of his shoulder, "Sorry Grimes, I hate to break it to yah, but you're wide awake".

"That's a shame", he agreed, "A would kill for one of them hospital Jell-O pots".

"Naw, a would have to be a roamer to touch one of them", Merricat sniffed playfully. The worry was plain to see in Rick's eyes. It's the kind of concern that you only see in a parents' eyes. "You made the right call Grimes, CDC or Fort Benning. We gotta get outta here before it becomes a hot zone".

"I know", he nodded, "My gut tells me am right, but when I look at everyone's faces, ah can't help but think otherwise".

"Don't you think about that now", she told him sternly, "That ain't directed at you, everyone is tired, still in shock a reckon, they thought that this was a safe place … people don't react well when they're security is ripped away from them".

"How old are you?" Rick laughed out of the blew, scratching the stubble on his chin, "A look at you an a see a girl who's barely grown, but when I hear you speak I feel like am talking to an old woman whose a'ready lived a whole lifetime".

Merricat gave him a small, reassuring smile, "I'll be twenty-one in December", she revealed.

"Hell", he almost gasped, "could 'a fooled me otherwise".

"Hush up now Grimes", she playfully warned him, "Come on now, gotta get moving before we lose more daylight".

"Yes ma'am", he smirked, and the two returned to the others.

"Hey Merricat!" The young woman turned to see Glenn calling her as he jogged in her direction, "You mind if I ride with you – considering someone" he shot both Dale and Rick a glare "murdered my baby". Merricat chuckled, glancing over at her Cadillac, "Don't see why not", she told him honestly. "Cool", he smiled, and followed her over to her car.

The convoy rode over the dusty hills of Georgia, Shane taking lead in his truck, followed by Dale's RV, then Merricat with Glenn, and the others followed in the procession. They figured it was the safest way to travel, going slowly, not wanting to draw attention to themselves. It wasn't long before they reached a safe backroad. Merricat glanced in her rear-view mirror, Sophie was content in playing with a few barbies and her teddy bear, lost in a childish world of make believe. Glenn had begun studying his map, a small smile creeping onto his face. The serenity was infectious, and even Merricat felt her chest warm with a small flame of hope lighting in her stomach. Even if they didn't find what they were looking for at the CDC, with these people, this group, Merricat felt a relief she hadn't felt in a long time, she felt protected, safe, something that she had found to always be in short supply even before the world went to shit. What could she call it, a sense of belonging? Without realising it, she began to smile. It felt like a secret hiding on the corners of her lips. Rick was right, this group, even the ever-so-charming Daryl Dixon, was _her_ people. And she was damn sure going to do everything in her power to try and keep them safe,

For the first time in a long time, Merricat felt like she had a lot more to live for, to survive for. And you could see it in her smile.

 _ **Thoughts?**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: I thought I should mention it now, but for these first couple of chapters, I'll be sticking pretty closely to the events as they happen in the show – just as I'm establishing both my OC characters and the timeline that I'm developing, don't worry though, as the story progresses there will be a lot more of a deviation, but also sticking to the general story line. So, apologises if some of the dialogue feels like déjà vu. Also, I'd like to add that all the views that are expressed by the characters do not in any way reflect my own, I just want to make them feel as real as possible.**

 **Also, thank you so much to darkhippie for the follow!**

 **Enjoy!**

 _ **Three**_

 _Hail Mary, full of Grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, Amen._

Fucking walkers. Every inch of Merricat was covered in their disgusting blood. She wished that she couldn't wield a sword, she wished that she could stay at a distance behind a gun like the others, but no, her weapon of choice just _had_ to be a sword, and she just _had_ to be good at using it. Now, she was arm deep in walker guts, because a sword was more efficient, and quieter, than a gun. There had been no problems when they had first approached the CDC, leaving their vehicles parked in what they deemed to be a safe location for them, they decided to press-on on foot. They came out of nowhere, a pack of around nine. Fearing that guns might attract more stranglers, Rick had given her a simple nod as a command, and she knew what she had to do. Truth be told, Merricat was secretly thankful for the chance to blow off some steam. She didn't feel right, since the business with Jim. She felt angry, angry that she couldn't get him to the CDC, angry at the loss of yet another member of their group. She hadn't known Jim well, but he is, _was_ , a kind man.

No one could tell what was worse, the surprise attack from the walkers, or the _smell_. All around them was dead bodies at various stages of decomposition, there had to be at least a hundred scattered around the building. Many dressed in military clothing, but some had clearly been civilians. What did it matter now anyway? They were all dead, and the thick stench of death and rotting corpses was unbearable. The last walker finally fell as they approached the sealed doors of the building. Merricat felt utterly drained by the strenuous work, none of them had eaten in days. They were all starving, weak, and just about ready to kick it. If the CDC was a dead end, they were in _real_ trouble.

Rick and Shane immediately went about trying to prise them open, with no luck. Merricat's heart sank as she felt that her suspicions had been confirmed, it was just a long-abandoned government building, not the salvation that they all had been praying for. In frustration, Shane banged a clenched fist against the steel, hoping that somebody, _anybody_ , would hear them. "There's nobody here", T-Dog murmured in defeat, Sophie looked at Merricat with a pained expression on her face, which was narrow with hunger, wideset eyes bulging from sunken sockets. She was looking at her sister as if to silently plead with her to somehow change the situation, to make the promised doctors appear out of thin air.

"Then why are the shutters down?" Rick snapped, his tone dripping with desperation, not hope. Merricat sighed, turning her head away, but she immediately wished that she hadn't, "Walkers!" she cried, as she saw a second, even larger pack approach them. They were far off, but still headed in their direction. A few stranglers in military colours clambered forward, and Merricat hesitated to act, she could barely raise her sword, she was _exhausted_. It was Daryl who dealt with them, taking them both out swiftly with his crossbow. He snarled angrily, but Shane was clearly in no mood for his usual belligerent commentary. "We made a call!" Shane asserted as he approached him, seeing that he was more than riled up. Sophie ran to her sister's side, terrified by the building conflict between the two men. "Well it was the wrong damn call!" Daryl sneered in response, but it was clear that Shane had reached his breaking point, the danger of the approaching pack looming over all their heads. He shoved him, hard, his expression twisted in frustration and panic, "Shut up, shut up!" he ordered, and turned sharply to Rick, "This is a dead end!"

"But where are we gonna go?" Carol asked feebly, clutching desperately to Sophia.

Merricat glanced to her with a look of sympathy as she clutched at her own child, "She's right Rick", she told him, stepping forward, "We can't be this close to the city after dark", she glanced anxiously at the walkers, "They've already got our scent, and they'll be more once the sun goes done".

"I'm scared Merricat", Sophie cried, trying to bury her head into her sister's hipbone. In return she clutched her tighter, having no words with which to comfort her.

"Fort Benning", Shane pressed on, "It's still an option Rick". The Sheriff was clearly conflicted as well as panicked, wracked with guilt at the notion that he had lead them all directly into harm's way.

"On what?" Andrea hissed, "No food, no fuel and it's a hundred miles away".

"It's twenty-five", Glenn corrected her meekly, "I, I checked the map".

"Forget Fort Benning we need answers tonight, now!" Lori finally yelled. The walkers were a lot closer, and their backs were up against a wall.

Rick watched helplessly as the group erupted into a loud clamour of half-hearted suggestions and cries of fear. "We'll figure something out", he tried to reassure them, but it did little good. Merricat refused to take her eyes of the slowly encroaching walkers, they were far too close now for comfort. "Rick, we gotta move, _**now**_ " she ordered, and she and Shane began to herd them all away back in the direction of their vehicles. "Everybody let's get back to the cars, come on now move".

Rick stayed rooted to the spot, raising his arm, "The camera moved!" he shouted, silencing everyone around him. Even Merricat looked towards it with a fleeting flash of hope in her eyes.

"You imagined it", Shane protested, not convinced and wanting frantically to get the hell out of dodge. "It's an automated device man, it's gears are just windin' down now come on!" he tried to pull him away, but he refused to move. Shane instantly lost the calm exterior that he had been desperate to keep together. "Look around this place man!" he pleaded angrily, "It's dead man, it's dead. We need to go". But Rick wasn't ready to give up as he charged forward once more, banging repeatedly on the shutters. "I know that you're in there, I know that you can see us!" he bellowed up at the small security camera. Shouts came from all round, Shane, Lori, Carol, Daryl. Chaos erupted as panic increased amongst their ranks. "Please", Rick begged, "We are desperate, please help us – we have women and children – no food – hardly any gas left – nowhere else to go" Lori bounded to her husband, desperate to make him see sense, they had to leave before it was too late. Shane finally gave up trying to talk sense, he grabbed the Sheriff roughly by the shoulders, ready to drag him away if necessary. The children were inconsolable, the cries and shouts were disorientating. With her right arm Merricat scooped up her sobbing sister, and with the left she drew her sword once more. The reflex was instinctual, protect Sophie, and keep her sword up.

It seemed like all hope was lost, but then a loud grating sound, bright white light. The shutter doors were raised rapidly, and blinding light poured out. Everyone froze and turned back towards the building, half in awe, half in disbelief. It had to be a miracle, an act of God, no other explanation seemed logical enough to explain it. It took a moment to process before they all clambered inside, the doors dramatically shutting tight behind them.

Florescent, artificial light was foreign. Something none of them had seen in a long time. Inside those walls, there seemed to be an abundance of it. Confusion, fear, relief, these emotions radiated from them all, rising to the ceiling and thickening the air. Everyone had their firearms raised as they poured inside. Daryl with his crossbow, the others with their guns, Merricat with their sword. "Hello, hello?" Rick called out, his voice echoing against the walls.

"Everybody, stick together", Merricat commanded, taking up the helm next to Rick.

"And watch for walkers", Dale added, cocking his rifle.

The cocking sound was repeated, but it hadn't been anyone in the group. They all turned to its source. A man, dressed in grey sweats and t shirt, stood before them with an automatic rifle pointed in their direction. "Anybody infected?" he asked them, his voice strong and commanding, it was the voice of a doctor.

"One of our group was", Rick told him honestly, "He didn't make it". Merricat felt her jaw clench at his words, _he might have made it_ , she thought bitterly, _they just left him behind_.

"Why are you here what do you want?" there was no pause in between the doctor's questions, he spoke quickly and concisely, gun still raised high.

"A chance", Rick answered, he didn't bother to hide the desperation in his voice, he needed this man to hear it, he needed him to see how dire their situation was.

The doctor stepped forward cautiously, "That's asking an awful lot these days", he commented.

"I know", Rick admitted, unsure of what else to say. The doctor's gaze moved to every single member of the group, he studied each and every one of their petrified faces. "You all submit to a blood test, that's the price of admission", he told them frankly.

Rick nodded, licking his dry lips, "We can do that".

The doctor sighed and lowered his gun. "You have stuff to bring in you do it now, once this door closes it stays closed", he warned them.

Shane, Merricat, Rick, Glenn and Daryl made the run for their supplies. They were the fastest, the best with dealing with walkers. T-Dog and Dale manned the doors, shutting it closed behind them. Once inside, the doctor spoke into a control entrance, "Vi, seal the main entrance. Kill the power up here". He turned to them all, it was Rick again who stepped forward. "Rick Grimes", he introduced himself, coaxing the doctor to do the same. He looked at him hesitantly, "Dr Edward Jenner".

The good doctor ushered them all into an industrial sized elevator, big enough to fit the whole group snugly. He rested his rifle against his side, raking a weary hand through his hair. "Do doctors always go walkin' around packin' heat like that?" Daryl was the first to speak up. Merricat glanced in his direction, Sophie still clinging to her like a monkey.

"Oh, there were plenty left lying around, I familiarised myself", he answered briskly, "but you all look harmless enough". But then he smiled, "Cept' you", he winked at Carl, "I'll have to keep my eye on you". Carl smiled warmly in response, and Merricat felt herself begin to feel more at ease around the stranger.

"You have to watch out for that one", Merricat joked with a small smile, "small but deadly".

It was the first time Dr Jenner had heard her speak, he smiled at her, and the child that she carried in her arms, "Looks like you got another tough one their yourself, what's your name sweetheart?"

"Sophie", the little girl answered with pink-tinged cheeks.

"A very pretty name", he commented warmly, but before any further conversation could continue, the elevator doors opened, and he lead them into the long corridor.

"Are we underground?" Jacqui piped up, often mostly silent, it was the first time Merricat had heard her speak since … since they'd parted with Jim.

"You claustrophobic?" Dr Jenner replied with a question.

"A little".

"Try not to think about it", he assured her as he led them into a darkened room. "Vi, bring up the lights in the big room". And at once, the bright lights kindled into life. "Welcome to zone 5"

"Where is everybody?" Rick finally asked the question that was playing on everyone's minds, "the doctors, the staff?"

"I'm it", Dr Jenner sighed, "It's just me here".

Lori raised an eyebrow, "What about the person you were speaking with? Vi?"

Dr Jenner chuckled, "Vi, say hello to our guests", he called out, "Tell them, welcome".

To their collective surprise, a female, but clearly automated voice responded, "Hello guests, welcome".

"I'm all that's left", he confirmed sadly, "I'm sorry".

Dr Jenner led them into a second, smaller room, but raised a hand to stop Merricat from entering. "There a problem?" she asked him plainly.

Dr Jenner gave her a look, "I'm assuming that that isn't your own blood that you're covered in, but that of the dead" he related. Merricat hesitated as she looked towards Rick for support, he was already making a bee line for their direction. "Before you go any further, I'll need you to get decontaminated. In case you spread any contamination throughout the facility". His reasoning was sound, but Merricat still felt weary. "Grimes, you mind taken Sophie for me?" she asked, handing the child over to him. "Where yah going Merricat?" her sister protested, not wanting to be separated. The older girl glanced at Dr Jenner, "To get cleaned up", she reassured her, "I'm more walker blood than woman".

"If you'd like to follow me", Dr Jenner gestured, but quickly turned to the others, "'I'll be back momentarily to run your blood tests". With that, Merricat was led away from the rest of her group. Her hand rested on the hilt of her sword as she followed the doctor, always ready for anything that could happen. "Your clothes will have to be incinerated", he told her bluntly, "I'm sure that I can find you something, most of the staff left in a hurry, left a lot of their belongings behind".

"I've been prancing around in half a shirt and trousers three sizes too-big, a garbage bag would be an improvement", she mused as she was brought inside the decontamination room. Dr Jenner handed her a zip-locked bag with a bio hazard symbol imprinted on it and gestured towards the Modec shower system. "Deposit the clothes into their and place them on the table. Once I leave the room you'll have three minutes before the decontamination process begins. I'll leave whatever suitable clothing that I can find outside. The process takes twenty minutes, you'll be okay to re-join your group once it's done".

Merricat nodded, but thinking quickly, she removed her scabbard and sword from her belt, handing it to the doctor, "You mind lookin after this for me, don't want it to get thrown into the furnace with the rest of my things … it has … sentimental value". Dr Jenner took it with a nod and left hurriedly out of the room. She was glad to be left alone, not wanting to divulge her familiarity with how such things worked, that information was too personal for a man she'd only known an hour. She wasn't looking forward to being doused in chemicals, but it was better to be safe than sorry. She waited until she was sure that Dr Jenner was gone before exhaling a heavy sigh, "Let's get this over with". She peeled off her shirt, folding in neatly and slipping it into the bag. She then worked on removing the rest of her clothing, leaving the bag outside as the doctor had instructed. Merricat immediately crossed her hands over her chest to provide a sense of modesty and to combat the cold. It had been a very long time since she had been completely bare … it felt too vulnerable. Her body was a foreign landscape to her now, unfamiliar territory. She dropped a staggering amount of weight, both her hipbones and ribcage protruding alarmingly against her skin. She caught a glimpse of her reflection in the clear glass, she looked so sickly, like a ghost, like _a walker_. She shuddered, pushing the thought from her mind. She walked forward, into the decontamination shower. Within seconds, there was a buzzing sound, and without warning she was sprayed with searing hot liquid. She gasped as her skin rippled with a burning sensation and she closed her eyes shut. She felt the layers of stubborn blood, dirt and grime give away against the water and liquid chemicals that attacked her body. The shower was automatically programmed, and as the first fifteen minutes dragged by slowly, Merricat sighed with relief as she felt the temperature decrease, and the stemming liquid felt gentler on her skin, clearly it was just water now. She ran her fingers through her hair in delight, it felt like absolute heaven. She now desperately savoured every second of sweet relief, it was utter bliss.

It ended far too soon, and Merricat felt a childish disdain as the shower shut itself off. She found a towel nearby and wrapped it tightly around her freshly cleaned body. God even the word clean sounded strange, she was actually clean! She could actually smell her skin without wanting to gag from the stench of old sweat and blood. She heard another buzz as the doors unlocked. She peaked her head outside. The bio hazard bag was gone, and in its place was a neatly folded pile of fresh clothing, just as promised. Merricat grinned as she held up the first of the garments. She was surprised to find that it was a dress. It wasn't that she was _opposed_ to wearing one, in fact, she was a little excited by the prospect, it had been so long after all. It was just, unexpected. Then there was the underwear, a mismatched set of blue bra and white underpants. Hell, she wasn't complaining. That coupled with a fresh pair of shoes, it was better than Christmas. She pulled on the clothing. The dress was a little loose, and the bra a bit too tight, but the boots fit perfectly. She used the towel to roughly dry her hair as best she could, now that it was finally clean for the first time in a long time, it actually set in its naturally curly state. Merricat smiled as she gazed at her reflection, she almost looked like herself again. A bit thinner and with longer hair, but she was now visibly Mary Katherine DuBois, not just some nameless emaciated woman, barely on the brink of survival. Her brief happiness was interrupted by a loud rumble of her stomach, she groaned as the familiar pang of hunger spoiled her moment. Couldn't she be allowed just one moment to indulge herself? She sighed, and decided to wait a few minutes, but as time ticked passed, and it became abundantly clear that the doctor _was not_ coming to fetch her, Merricat resolved to find her own way back to the group.

She tried at first to retrace her steps but found herself taking a wrong turn here and there. She cursed herself as she came to yet another dead end, huffing in annoyance. "This a medical centre or a goddamn maze", she snapped irritably to herself, before continuing back down the corridor. After roughly twenty minutes or so, Merricat finally heard faint sounds that alerted her to the groups presence, she couldn't be sure, but it sounded like … laughter. She followed the noises until they eventually led her to another large room, a kind of canteen. She smiled as she saw everyone gathered around tables that had been pushed together. Chatting, laughing, but more importantly, eating. They hadn't noticed her coming in, and she smirked as she approached them, "Couldn't have waited for me huh?" she laughed, and all heads turned to greet her.

"Can't blame us", Dale laughed, "You try not eating for days and see how long your dinner etiquette lasts".

"Hmm", Merricat mused, a smile creeping onto the corners of her mouth. Hell, everyone was smiling, bar Glenn, who just stared at her with his lips parted as though he was dumbfounded by the sight of her. "Holy crap", he exclaimed, "You're actually really hot".

The whole table erupted in laughter, and his face turned bright red as his own words resonated with him. Even Merricat couldn't keep a straight face. "Did I look that much like a train wreck?" she jibed, taking the empty seat next to Sophie, who just so happened to choose to sit next to Daryl. Glenn flushed even further, "I mean, you were always covered in blood and guts, it was hard to tell", he tried to defend himself, but it only furthered everyone else's teasing of him. Dale passed her a plate and a glass of water. The elevated mood only continued to rise as people almost became giddy. Dale poured Lori her second glass of wine, even going as far to offer some to Carl.

"No uh, hell no", Lori answered for him, and he gave his mother a pleading look.

Dale could only smile, "you know in Italy, children have a little bit of wine with their dinner – and in France".

"Well, when Carl is in Italy or France he can have some then", Lori replied sharply, covering his own cup with her hand. Merricat giggled childishly at the scene.

"What's it gonna hurt, come on", Rick teased lightly. It was good to see him relaxed for a change, "What'yah reckon Merricat?" he turned to her.

The young girl in turn smiled, "I am not the one to ask on the topic", She laughed, "My mama couldn't wait to have me and my brother drinking with her, she practically dripped chardonnay into our Sippy cups". She roused another round of laughter from the table, and Lori shot her a playful smirk before raising her hands, and everyone cheered as Dale poured him a drop. "Here you are young lad".

Rick watched his son in anticipation, as if he already knew exactly what his reaction would be. Carl grinned before taking a drink, but the minute the red liquid touched his lips, he grimaced, making a sound of disgust, "Bleh, ew that's gross!"

"that's my boy", Lori cheered as she tipped the contents into her own cup. Merricat laughed loudly and Rick shot her a wink. Everyone was simply merry, and clearly becoming drunk very quickly, on the alcohol or because of the relief, it was impossible to tell.

"You're best stickin to soda pop there, bud", Shane commented quietly. Merricat gave him a once over, it now only registering that he was being awfully quiet, in fact he was the only one seated without a big grin plastered on his face.

Dale glanced at Merricat, realising that she herself was without a drink, and grabbed her a glass, and quickly began to pour her a cup, stretching his arm across the table. "Hey now there", Rick smirked, holding out his hand "Last time I checked the drinking age was twenty-one, your underage miss DuBois". He was clearly messing with her, and Merricat was more than prepared to meet his challenge, "Grimes, I'm a full-blooded southern born woman, and if you're tryn'a stop me having a drink with my meal you and I are gonna have some real problems" she warned him playfully.

There was a fake showdown of sorts between them as the two stared each other out, it barely lasted minutes before they both erupted into laughter. "Get it down yah girl", he told her with a grin as he passed her the cup.

"Underage?" Jacqui questioned, "How old are you Merricat? A never thought to ask you".

The girl smirked, and took a sip of her wine, "Relax now y'all, I'm twenty, not fourteen", she disclosed.

"Twenty", Glenn gasped, "You're _younger_ than me?"

"Evidently", she responded with a wink, "Physically at least, we all know girls mature faster than boys".

"Now that's debatable", Dale quipped who handed Glenn a full bottle to himself. "Not you Glenn", Daryl interrupted, although his tone was light.

"What?" Glenn laughed in response.

"Drinkin little man, I wanna see how red your face can get", he dogged, and the laughter continued. Merricat stole a glanced, she was convinced that it had been the first time that she had ever seen Daryl be _pleasant_ with anyone.

Rick smiled as he glanced around him, it felt like a surreal moment, to go from one extreme to the other, from absolute fear to genuine happiness. He felt that the moment needed something as felt his chest swell with gratitude, with that in mind, he raised his glass, tapping it lightly with his fork as he rose to his feet. "seems to me that we haven't thanked our host properly", he announced.

"He is more than our host", T-Dog proclaimed proudly, raising his glass high.

"Here, here", Merricat agreed, repeating the gesture. Her words were echoed, as everyone began to cheer, crying Boo-yah and raising their glasses.

"So, when are you gonna tell us about what the hell happened here?" Shane interrupted the celebratory moment, and everyone fell into an uncomfortable silence. "All the, ah, the other doctors, the people who were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?"

"We're celebrating Shane", Rick cautioned him, not very happy with his tone, "Let's not do this now".

"No, let's", Shane argued, "This is why we're here, right? This was your move, supposed to, ah, find all the answers. Instead, ah, we found him", he gestured to Dr Jenner. Merricat's eyebrows furrowed together, she herself wasn't exactly thrilled with how he was addressing the man that basically saved their asses, put it plainly, he was acting like a dick.

Dr Jenner also seemed taken aback by Shane's not-so thinly veiled insult. He set down his glass, and cleared his throat, "well, when things got bad, a lotta people just left. Went off to be with their families. And, when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun. Alotta people just, bolted".

"Every last one?" Shane continued to pry, his voice dripping with cynicism. Merricat glanced at Rick, silently urging him to make Shane quit while he was ahead.

"No", Dr Jenner grunted, "many couldn't face walking out the door. They … _opted out_. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time".

Sophie, being so young, couldn't understand the thick tension that hung in the air, she couldn't comprehend the seriousness of what the doctor was telling them. "But that's a good thing!" she piped up with her endless optimism, "They're all in heaven now. Maw brother Ashley put a rope around his neck to go to heaven too, and he was gonna take me with him but Merricat wouldn't let him", she smiled pleasantly.

The whole table tensed at the child's innocent, but depleting words. Merricat's eyes went wide as she threw an arm around her sister and quickly kissed the top of her head, "Don't you think about that now, you hear me? Don't think about it", she told her firmly, and she glanced anxiously at everyone around her, they all had the same look etched upon their faces, a mixture of horror and pity, even when she turned to Daryl, hoping for his usual removed attitude, she was let down, because she could see it in his eyes too as he stared indiscreetly at the child sitting next to him.

"But you stayed", Andrea addressed Dr Jenner quickly, clearly as keen as everyone else to move the conversation along, "Why?"

Dr Jenner's attention was pulled away from Sophie, as he focused on Andrea. "I just kept working", he shrugged, "hoping, to, ah, to do some good".

Another silence fell, and Merricat still clang to her sister. Oh God, she prayed that the small child would somehow forget that memory, she didn't want her to remember her brother that way. He was lucid towards the end, didn't understand what he was doing.

"Dude", Glenn grimaced, "You are such a buzzkill man".

Shane seemed unphased by the change in the atmosphere, but Merricat knocked back the contents of her glass in one large gulp. Her good mood poisoned by the terrible memories that refused to leave her mind at peace. She stared down fearfully at Sophie, who happily sipped at her cola. "It's alright Merricat", she smiled up at her big sister, "You promised Ashley, remember? That if things got real bad, you would take me to heaven yourself, ain't that right?"

The woman looked at the little girl with heavy eyes, yes, she had promised. And that was _exactly_ what she was trying so hard to forget.

* * *

"Most of the facility is powered down", Dr Jenner informed them as he showed the group around the rooms that they were to stay in. "Including housing, so you'll have to make do here. Couches are comfortable, but there are cots in storage if you like. There's a rec room down the hall that you kids might enjoy. Just, don't plug in the video games, okay? Or anything that draws power". Both Carl and Sophia smiled and nodded in understanding. Sophie went unphased by the news as yawned loudly in her sister's arms, clearly someone was up far past their bedtime. "Same rule applies", Dr Jenner continued, "If you shower go easy on the hot water", and with that final bit of advice, he left the group to occupy themselves. Glenn turned slowly to face everyone, "Hot water?" he repeated, almost not believing what the doctor had just said.

"That's what the man said", T-Dog grinned, and Merricat smiled, herself reminiscing on the bliss she had experienced in showering hours before. Everyone spread out, calling dibs on the rooms that they could find. It was clear that most of them would have to double up, but who could complain? I mean, what's sharing a room compared to having a steaming hot shower, and a bed for the night? Merricat carried Sophie inside the first room with a cot that she could find. The little girl flopped down, ready to sleep right there and then. "Hold your horses baby", Merricat cooed, "You need a bath first".

"But am tired", Sophie complied, but did nothing as Merricat scooped her up once more, carrying her into the adjoining bathroom. She ran the bath so that the temperature was mild enough, before working Sophie out of her clothes. She grumbled whilst her sister thoroughly washed out her hair with soap, working a flannel over her from top to toe, especially behind the ears. Merricat hauled her sister from the tub, wrapping her up in a warm fluffy towel and drying her down before plopping her into a long t shirt that she found in the chest of drawers. It was long enough to act as a nightgown. Now that she was finally clean and pristine, Merricat carried her back over to the cot, wrapping her up in every blanket that she could find.

"Do you think Mr Jenner will let us stay here?" Sophie yawned, Merricat gave her a small smile as she patted down her hair and kissed the top of her nose, "I hope so baby".

"Me too", Sophie smiled tiredly, "can you sing me mama's song?"

"Alright honey", Merricat whispered, continuing to stroke her sister's hair lovingly,

" _ **Sleep my child and peace attend thee,**_

 _ **All through the night**_

 _ **Guardian angels God will send thee,**_

 _ **All through the night**_

 _ **Soft the drowsy hours are creeping,**_

 _ **Hill and dale in slumber sleeping**_

 _ **I my loved ones' watch am keeping,**_

 _ **All through the night**_

 _ **Angels watching, e'er around thee,**_

 _ **All through the night**_

 _ **Midnight slumber close surround thee,**_

 _ **All through the night**_

 _ **Soft the drowsy hours are creeping,**_

 _ **Hill and dale in slumber sleeping**_

 _ **I my loved ones' watch am keeping,**_

 _ **All through the night"**_

Merricat sang softly, but she didn't need to finish the song, she smiled warmly as she saw Sophie's breathing even out, and nuzzle further into her people, blissfully sound a' sleep. "Goodnight baby", she whispered softly, and rose quietly to her feet. She turned on her heels to switch off the light but was startled to find T-Dog and Daryl leering in the doorway. She gasped, but quickly clamped a hand over her mouth. The two men struggled to suppress their laughter, and she twisted her face in a terrible scowl, "Didn't know one ever tell y'all that sneakin' up on someone in the apocalypse is a good way to get yourselves killed?" she scolded them.

"We was goin' down to that rec room that Dr J was talkin bout, heard y'all down the hall", T-Dog smirked, "Ain't you just a big old softie".

Merricat raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, a softie with the capability to strangle you with my bare feet", she threatened, but T-Dog simply sniggered. Merricat didn't hesitate to whack him over the head, "You hush up before you wake her!" she warned in hushed tones, and even Daryl smirked silently to himself.

"Whatever spitfire, you comin or what?" T-Dog chortled, and Merricat rolled her eyes, but followed them out the door with a grin.

Just as they reached the rec room, they watched Shane storm out, stomping like a bull. He charged past them, not giving the trio so much as a glance. "What the hell do y'all reckon is wrong with him?" Merricat wondered aloud.

"Fuck knows", Daryl snorted, "I ain't shitfaced enough to deal with that kinda crap yet".

"Amen to that", Merricat observed, "Let's go get hammered".

They walked inside, but where shocked to find Lori standing with her back pressed against the wall, and it was pretty damn clear that she was crying. Merricat immediately bolted in her direction, and the moment that she saw the girl, Lori quickly wiped underneath her eyes. "You okay?" Merricat queried softly, placing a hand gently on her shoulder.

"I'm fine", Lori sniffed, embarrassed to be seen to be so vulnerable, "just fine".

Merricat was clearly unconvinced, "Well you don't look fine. Did he say somethin to you?" she spoke firmly, "Did he _do_ anything to you?" Lori looked directly into her mismatched eyes, it was clear what she was insinuating, a look of concern engraved deep into her face.

Lori bit her lip, and wagged her head, "We, just, just had a spat. That's all, it was nothin, nothin that you need to concern yourself with", and with that, she pushed passed her, retreating into the hallway. Merricat shared a look with both T-Dog and Daryl, "This shit seem really goddamn concerning to anyone else?" she posited the question. T-Dog gave a nod, and Daryl simply plopped himself down on the couch, "Like a said, I ain't shitfaced enough to deal with that kinda crap".

* * *

"Alright, alright, alright. One celebrity to sleep with, in the entire apocalypse, who would it be?" the four of them laughed together, Daryl, T-Dog, Merricat and Glenn, who had joined them shortly after Lori had left. They had been drinking well into the early hours of the morning, and they were all, particularly Glenn who had been dealing out the questions, utterly plastered.

"Depends", Merricat smirked coyly, taking another swig from Daryl's bottle of Southern Comfort, "Is this a one-night stand kinda deal, or a fuckbuddy for the apocalypse until we both eventually get our faces munched off by a couple a' corpses?" she jested.

"Ah, either way, but it's only the one celebrity – no takesies backsies", Glenn slurred, his words tripping into one another.

Merricat hummed as if in deep thought, before answering with a wiggle of her eyebrows, "Angelina Jolie, one hundred per cent".

"Damn that was my pick", T-Dog huffed, before his eyes went wide in alarm, "Wait, wait, wait, you a dyke spitfire?"

"Aw man", Glenn whined, and nearly fell of his chair in the process. Merricat gave a very un-ladylike laugh as response, before satisfying their curiosity, "Not really no", she laughed, "Had an experience or two in my first year of college", she teased them, "Guess you can say that a' swing both ways". It wasn't an over exaggeration to say that the jaw of every male in the room nearly hit the floor at her confession. "Besides", she grinned, "One celebrity? At's gotta be Angelina, I mean, God! Have you seen those lips? And those cheekbones?" And Merricat flipped her hair back jokingly as if overwhelmed by the thoughts and took another gulp of whisky before passing it back to Daryl. "What about you Mr Dixon, who would you pick?"

He rolled his eyes at the increasingly drunk girl, who he was bitterly regretting sitting next to. He leaned back into the couch and gave that kind of scoff that men do when they want to express their disinterest in something. "Doesn't make no difference who it is, pussy's a pussy", he claimed, and Merricat batted at his arm in disapproval, "How crude!" she marvelled, swaying a little as she repositioned herself to face him. "Your views on women aren't exactly enlightened, are they Mr Dixon?" He flinched slightly, utterly convinced that her voice had been notched up a few decibels.

"Comin from the girl that was just braggin' about sleepin with women not five seconds ago", he retaliated.

Merricat pretended to gasp in horror, before tutting childishly, "Ah did not say that ah _slept_ with women", she corrected him, and stood to her feet, she stepped forward to stretch her legs, the hem of her dress hitching upwards as she did so, "Ah merely divulged that I had _experiences_. Now, that could 'a been anything from an innocently stolen kiss to a leisurely walk down the boulevard, arm in arm, spilling secrets and sippin' on iced tea, lounging into the summer evenin", she gushed, and did a twirl.

T-Dog laughed loudly, "Is it just me, or is it that the more drunk she gets, the more she starts talkin like a real southern' lady". His observation wasn't untrue, Merricat's accent did have a habit of becoming more pronounced in say, more relaxed situations.

"Yeah", Glenn agreed, "We should be callin you Scarlett O'Hara".

"I'll have you know that Miss Scarlet O'Hara was a native of Georgia, not Louisiana", she informed them, her voice light and airy, in act her whole body felt light and airy. Rather than sit back down however, she began exploring the rec room. She made her way over to the bookshelf, her eyes scanning over the hordes of books neatly stacked in row after row. She fingered each spine carefully, before plucking out a worn copy of George Orwell's 1984. It's funny, she thought to herself. That book had scared the shit out of her when she had first read it as a teen, now though, what she wouldn't give to live peacefully in the dystopia that he had fabricated with big brother watching her, rather than the one that she lived in now. Merricat was about to replace the book, when she saw something stuffed into the back of the shelf that immediately caught her eye. "What on earth?" she reached forward, tongue poking out from her mouth in concentration. Carboard, a small carboard box. She pulled it out, and her eyes went wide as she could see it in the better lighting. "Well holy shit, holy shit!" she bubbled in delight.

"What's got you jumpin about over there?" T-Dog eyed up the girl, who spun and waved her prize in the air, a pack of cigarettes. "I think you jus' found some son' of a bitch's secret stash", T-Dog commented as she sat back down, well, more fell back beside Daryl. She was absolutely ecstatic as she tore open the new packet, "Menthols, my favourite!" she grinned, as she popped one in between her lips. "Shit", she hissed, "Anyone got a light?" T-Dog held his hands up, "Don't look at me, that there's a filthy habit", he scolded her, and she rolled her eyes.

Daryl snorted, even the comment not being directed at him, he fished his own Zippo from his trouser pocket, but felt something cool press up against his knuckles, _shit_ , he thought _, I still have that woman's cross_. He held the lighter up, but as Merricat reached over for it, he held his hand away, "Hold on a sec there Red, straight up trade", he told her, and she raised an eyebrow, but willingly handed over the packet. Daryl roughly tugged one out for himself, but, he was a man of his word, and after lighting his own, he held the flame up for her. "See", Merricat teased, "you can be a gentleman when you want to but, thank you anyhow". She took a long, slow drag, savouring the smoke that tumbled down into her lungs, wanting to hold it there for as long as possible. She gave a contented sigh as she exhaled lazily and watched the smoke dance before her eyes. "I think a' change my mind, I'll swap Jolie for an unlimited supply of smokes".

"Fine with me", T-Dog grinned.

"You guys aren't thinking creatively enough", Glenn wheezed, just finishing off his second bottle of wine, "One celebrity – easy – Charlize Theron".

"Why Charlize Theron?" Merricat laughed but felt herself feel a bit ill as the nicotine rush pulsed through her body. She lay her head back against the arm of the couch and swung her legs up so that they were now stretched out over Daryl's knees.

"Cause, first off, she is crazy super-hot", Glenn grinned, "And secondly, she's a total badass, does her own stunts and everything, make sweet love to her by night and let her kill every geek in a ten-mile radius by day".

Merricat rolled her eyes, "An what will you be doin' while poor Charlize is getting' up to all this?" she challenged him.

"Easy, playin video games in my man cave all day", he answered her. The three of them began to laugh, while Daryl was still firmly focused on the fact that _her_ legs were now on top of his own. "You mind?" he grunted at her, cigarette hanging from his lips.

"Not really no", she smirked, tapping on her own cigarette before bringing it back to her lips.

"You honestly just go outta your way to annoy the shit outta me, don't ya Red?" he told her snidely.

"At first, no", she continued to tease him, "But it is becoming rather entertaining". He glared at her, but did nothing more, he certainly didn't make an effort to remove her legs from their resting place on his lap. Glenn began giggling uncontrollable, before flat out – falling forward, completely passed out. "Aw shit", T-Dog huffed, "Damn idiot can't hold his booze".

"He hasn't ever drunk alcohol before, cut him some slack", Merricat chided him, "Come on, we better move him in case he chokes on his own vomit", and like a shot she bounced up, and with T-Dog's help they hauled him onto the vacant couch, making sure that the young boy was okay. Merricat rubbed her eyes, "It's getting really late anyway, we should all be gettin' to bed".

"Yes _mom_ ", T-Dog joked, but stumbled off into the hallway regardless. Merricat turned to Daryl, "You comin?" she asked plainly.

He shrugged his shoulders, "Naw, Im'a crash here".

"Same as everywhere else I suppose", she agreed, and watched as Daryl put out his cigarette, noticing how he seemed to have some discomfort with his shoulder as he did so. "That still causin' you problems?" she asked him, the sensible Merricat finally overcoming her drunken self. Daryl shrugged his shoulders, "It comes, and it goes".

She stepped a bit closer, studying the area intently, "Those bandages will need ta be changed soon, I can do it in the morning if yah want", she told him, but Daryl seemed to stiffen at the very notion, "Also, if you get a shower, keep that arm dry, I highly doubt that tooth floss will be particularly water proof, and those stitches need ta stay in a few more days".

"You always is' bossy?" he asked, kicking off his boots. "I am not bossy", she sassed, "I just happen to be right more often than not". With that she began to make her own que to leave, knowing that her cot with Sophie was only a few doors down the hall. Just as she was about to exit the room, she glanced over her shoulder at the two men, "Goodnight Dixon", she smiled.

Daryl shifted uneasily, but responded with a brief nod, "G'night Red".

Merricat began to stumble blindly through the hallway, feeling as though the room was spinning around her. She eventually found her way back to her room, stepping gingerly in the dark until her foot hit against the side of the cot. She sighed as she pulled off her boots and climbed as quietly as her inebriated state would allow onto the small bed next to the sleeping Sophie. She immediately threw her arms around her, and Sophie immediately nuzzled in closer upon feeling the contact. Merricat breathed a sigh of relief, which was a bit louder than she intended, and she felt Sophie stir a little beside her. "Shhh now baby", she hushed her, "go on back to sleep, it's only me".

Sophie mumbled incoherently against her, before uttering a sentence that made Merricat's blood freeze in her veins. "You smell like daddy".

From that moment, Merricat decided that she was most definitely _not_ going to drink again, no matter the circumstances. She held onto the little girl tighter, blinking back tears which had managed to sneak their way into the corners of her eyes. She lay like that, staring into the darkness, before finally falling into a troubled, unsettled sleep.

* * *

" _For god sakes Ashley, think about what you're asking me!" Mary Katherine cried angrily, hot salty tears staining her cheeks._

 _Ashley looked at his younger sister as though he was deeply wounded by her pleas, by her tears, "No Mary, think about what you are asking of me", he told her harshly, "I just, can't do this anymore! I just, I just … the boy could barely finish his sentence before erupting into heavy wet sobs. He collapsed to his knees, burying his face into blanched hands. Mary Katherine felt her heart implode at that sight of her brother in so much despair. She dropped to her own knees, pulling him into a tight hug, allowing his crestfallen head to rest tenderly against her chest. She held him gently, slender fingers running through his golden curls. "Please Ashley, please", she whispered, "You aren't thinking straight, just, just wait a few more days. Things will turn around, you'll see". He laughed dryly in return. "Do you hear yourself Mary, things will turn around? The world has ended. The dead are killing the living, how, how in God's name can you pretend to so optimistic? We're dead. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow. Maybe the dead will tear us limb from limb, maybe bandits will find us, rape you, rape Sophie, and then blow our brains out. Either way, we're already dead"._

" _Not if we get back to de Folie, if we just get back home, we'll be okay"._

 _Ashely broke away from her suddenly, rising frantically to his feet, he stared down at his sister with a look of total disgust. "And who's fault is it that we aren't home in the first place?" he spat horribly. Mary Katherine was taken aback his cruel words. He pointed a shaking finger at her, "_ _ **You**_ _, made us leave de Folie,_ _ **you**_ _dragged us across two states, to this godforsaken place"._

 _Mary Katherine cried feebly, raking a hand through her hair, "I didn't ask you to come with me!" and she turned away._

 _He glared at her, "You were leaving with Sophie, of course I had to come with – imagine what might have happened had I not!"_

" _Why are you doing this to me, why?" she begged, hugging her arms around herself, "You know why I had to leave, I would've_ _ **died**_ _otherwise. I was dying there Ashley, with him,_ _ **them**_ _. I didn't know, didn't know that the world would come to this!"_

" _No", he sneered, "I_ _ **don't**_ _know why you had to leave. You think that you were the only one that suffered? But you,_ _ **you**_ _couldn't stand it. So, what was your plan? Sacrifice your integrity, your dignity,_ _ **our honour**_ _? Toss away our family name as if it means nothing", Mary Katherine's head fell as she felt herself become overwhelmed with guilt, he was right, of course he was, it was all_ _ **her**_ _fault. He stepped forward, closing the space between them, he placed his long fingers underneath her chin, and raised her head ever so slightly so that her eyes met his. "Go to de Folie, if you can. He will forgive you,_ _ **they both will**_ _", he told her softly, and lent down to plant a kiss on what you could argue was Mary Katherine's cheek, but was in fact the corner of her mouth. He'd always been careful that way. Her brother lingered there a moment, and she felt her whole-body freeze in helplessness as his hands dropped from beneath her chin, tortuously dragging down the lengths of her arms, settling on her lower hips. "But I can't", he whispered against her skin, pulling her tighter against him as his lips travelled to her ear. Her eyes glazed over with that familiar, lost look as she felt her mind begin to dissociate from what was going on around her. His hands felt cold and clammy against her, his breath too hot. Her stomach tightened in knots, she wanted to be sick. "I'm taking Sophie with me", he muttered._

 _Those words brought her back instantaneously, igniting a fiery strength that could not be ignored. She pushed him roughly away from her, "No!" she howled, drawing her sword in a fury. She saw the fear flash in Ashley's eyes as he backed away from her feebly. "You, will not touch her. You dare try, and I will end you myself, and I will make sure that you feel the pain"._

" _Easy, easy now Merricat", he addressed her with raised hands, his tone completely changed, "Think about what you're doing, your threatening your own brother". Mary Katherine hesitated, as the tears continued to fall, but she did not lower her sword. "If, if this is what you want, truly, I, I can't stop you. But hear me Ashley, hear what I am saying. Sophie is staying with me", she warned him, "She is staying, with me. If the time comes, if it's there is no other way, no other option in keeping her safe, understand this,_

 _I will do whatever needs to be done"._

* * *

Merricat awoke with a sharp inhale as she lurched forward. Her forehead was dripping with sweat, and she was panting profusely. The dream, no, the memory clung to her mind, refusing to release its hold on her. Her panting grew worse as her eyes begin to sting with tears, her erratic breathing turned very quickly to desperate gasps, as she struggled to get air into her lungs. She knew what this was, she'd had plenty of panic attacks before. Sh quickly clasped both hands over her mouth as she desperately attempted to muffle her sobs. She just wanted to forget, she couldn't bear to relive it all again. Merricat pulled her knees tightly in to her chest as she fought to control her breathing. She tried to clear her mind: _I am experiencing distress. I am feeling this way because an unwanted memory has upset me. I am safe inside the Centre for Disease Control. I am not there. I am travelling with a group of survivors who I trust. I am safe._ She chanted the mantra over and over in her head until she could fool herself into believing that it was true. Finally, her breathing slowed to a more even pace, and the panic subsided. She looked around, expecting to have woken Sophie with all the noise she had made, but to her surprise, she was gone. At first, fearing the worst, Merricat leaped from the bed, she desperately glanced around for her shoes, pulling them on as quickly as she could. The fear followed her from the dream, as she bolted down the corridor and into the rec room. It was empty, although it was evident that two men had slept there. Daryl, Glenn, she recounted in her mind. She quickly spun on her heels and began running back down the length of the hall. The canteen. She would have gone to the canteen. She didn't stop until she bounded through the doors, she saw Lori, Carl, Dale, Carol, Sophia, Jacqui, and then to her relief, Sophie, chatting away mindlessly to Daryl. "Sophie", Merricat exhaled a breath she didn't realise that she was holding as she bounded forward, picking up her sister and twirling her around in her arms. Sophie giggled in delight as Merricat held her tightly. "You're okay", she remarked thankfully.

"Why wouldn't a' be?" Sophie puzzled, reaching out to touch her sister's cheek, "a' heard you cryin in your sleep again", she informed her. Lori and the others looked on, their curiosities peaked by Merricat's strange behaviour. Her hair was wild, and she seemed a little out of breath. She in turn tried to smile reassuringly, "It was nothin, just a bad dream".

"You have lots of bad dreams", Sophie noted, for a five-year-old, she sure as hell was smart as a whip.

"Yeah", she breathed shakily, "I do".

"It's probably your witching eye keepin you up at night", Sophie theorized, forefinger circling around Merricat's green eye. She smiled in return, "Probably".

Most of everyone's attentions were diverted when Rick entered the room, all but two remained with their gazes fixed on the girls. Carol scanned Merricat from head to toe, something about her demeanour, her erratic behaviour, it felt … familiar. The same familiarity struck a core with Daryl as well, as he watched Merricat cling to Sophie as though her life depended on it. It was something about the fear embedded in her eyes … must have been some helluva' nightmare.

"Morning", Rick greeted them all, taking his place at the head of the table. Carl was the first to speak, with a sly smile. "Are you hungover? Mom said that you would be".

"Mom is right", he smiled, it was the kind of smile that let you know that inside he was absolutely _dying_ with a hangover, but that he didn't want it to show.

"Mom has that annoying habit", Lori chuckled as she picked at her bacon.

"Come on Merricat, you wanna get breakfast with me and Mr Dixon?"

Merricat couldn't help but laugh sceptically, but glanced over at Daryl anyhow, "Seriously?" she mouthed, before focusing her attention back on her sister. "Ah didn't realise that you had already made plans without me", she commented.

"Well, a' spend all'a my time with you Merricat", she stressed, "and you always said that a' should try and make friends". Merricat couldn't help but gape as her sister squirmed free from her arms, and practically skipped back over to the belligerent hillbilly. She felt utterly dumbfounded as Sophie dragged Daryl over to two vacant chairs, happily rekindling her discussion on how Rapunzel was the greatest Disney princess of all time, debating her superiority against Merricat's (once secret favourite), Belle, riveting. Merricat turned to face the others with a look of disbelief plastered across her face, Rick was already smirking at her, "Did I just get rejected by a five-year-old?" she asked.

"Looks like it", Rick chuckled as she took the seat next to Glenn, who in turn could barely lift his head.

"Eggs!" T-Dog exclaimed, practically prancing with the frying pan, "Powdered, but a' do em good", he smirked as he piled up each of their plates, "protein, is good for a hangover".

"Don't ever, ever, ever, let me drink again", Glenn moaned, and Merricat clapped him on the back, "Hey, it was your first time, it gets easier – just don't start with red wine next time! Did nobody warn you that it's a killer for hangovers?"

Glenn simply groaned as response.

"Hey", Merricat felt herself tense at the familiar voice. Shane scurried into the room, going immediately to the fresh pot of coffee, he looked like hell.

"Hey", Rick greeted, completely unaware of his wife's growing discomfort. Merricat gave her a reassuring glance. Though she was his friend upon first joining the group, Merricat had decided with absolute certainty the night before that she did not trust Shane, not anymore. "You feel as bad as I do?" Rick asked his friend.

"Worse", Shane muttered, as he began to pour himself a cup of coffee.

"What the hell happened to you?" T-Dog blurted out, scanning Shane's face. Merricat felt her ears prick up as she stared intently at him, it didn't take her long to notice the scratch marks on his neck. "Must'a done it in ma sleep", he stated dismissively, but Merricat, T-Dog and Daryl glared on with unconvinced expressions, even Rick, who was oblivious to the situation in the rec room the previous evening, seemed doubtful, "Never seen you do that before", he pointed out, and Shane looked directly at Lori as he spoke, "Me neither. Not like me at all". Merricat felt the panic begin to stir in the pit of her stomach, not wanting to be around him any longer, she stood up, making her weariness of him known. "Would y'all excuse me", she stated in a monotonous voice, and abruptly left the table, left the canteen altogether. Merricat's dramatic change in attitude did not go unnoticed, particularly by Rick, who immediately spoke up after she left, "Is she alright, am a' missing somethin here?"

"Naw, she's good", Daryl answered quickly, surprising everyone, even himself, "She's just as hungover as the rest of us". T-Dog gave him a nod of respect, knowing damn rightly as he did that it wasn't a hangover that was troubling the woman. Her whole behaviour wasn't sitting right with Daryl, but he stopped himself while he was ahead, why did he care of the broad had gotten her panties in'a twist by pokin her nose into other peoples' business? Whatever was goin on between Shane and Lori, it was between Shane and Lori. He shoved a large forkful of eggs into his mouth, electing not to speak up again on the subject.

Merricat wandered the lit hallways, she needed a distraction, hell, she needed to kill somethin. She felt itchin for fresh air, for sunlight. Typical, she finally finds an actual safe place in the world, and she has to go and get some kinda cabin fever. _I am experiencing anxiety. I am feeling like this because I know that there was an altercation between Shane and Lori. But I know that I can trust these people, my people, I am safe with them._ She tried to use her method on her current situation, but try as she might, Merricat couldn't dispel the doubt that was gnawing away at her. As she wandered, she found herself heading back towards the big room. She had felt drawn to it, in a way that people are drawn to things that feel familiar to them. The room was a lot like one of the research labs at her old' university. "Vi", she called out, "can you turn on the lights in the big room?" And just like that, they kindled into life. Merricat smiled, she had found her distraction. She made her way over to the nearest control panel. Her old lab used an older model, but the core system of the computer was relatively the same. She began browsing through files, giving them a double glance as they were projected onto the big screen above, nothing came across of major importance. She soon grew tired of gazing at the screen, but it served its purpose well enough, she felt a lot calmer than she had ten minutes ago. She lifted her head with full intentions of leaving and heading to the rec room, when she noticed a rather large timer counting down on the wall. It was at one hour, 16 minutes, 27 seconds. Her interest peaked, Merricat bit her lip in hesitation, before calling out, "Vi, what is that countdown for?"

There was a moment of silence, before the female systems voice replied, "The countdown is indicating the time left before the power in the emergency generators runs out".

Merricat knew, she did not like the sound of that, "Vi, what happens when the power runs out?"

"When the power runs out, facility wide decontamination will occur", the computer responded. Merricat thought for a moment, puzzled by its meaning? Facility wide decontamination? Had they rigged a cleaning solution to the fire sprinkler system? No, that would only disinfect organic matter, and wouldn't be as effective or as efficient as simply using showers. Facility wide, that could only mean –

Merricat gasped loudly as the dots connected in her mind, "Holy shit, holy shit!" Facility wide decontamination, that meant facility wide _self-destruction_. In an hour's time, the whole building was going to blow. She had to tell the others, warn them, they had to get the hell out of dodge before they were blasted to kingdom come. Merricat turned to leave, but immediately knocked into something hard, not something, she realised, a person. "Dr Jenner", she gasped. His expression was unreadable as he stared at the girl calmly. "Thank God it's you, we have to get everyone outta here. The whole facility is going to explode, in an hour, we have to get everything we can and move out, we have to …" she trailed off as Merricat witnessed the doctor process all the information calmly. Merricat felt her throat constrict at the realisation, "But you already know that, don't you?" she quavered, taking a step back from him. "You knew, but you weren't going to say anything".

He simply nodded, and gave her a sad smile, "It's better this way". Her eyes went wide as the breath hitched in her throat, and she tried to back away slowly.

"Dr Jenner", she stammered, "Don't do this, it doesn't have to be this way. We, we can get everyone out, safely, I know what you may think, but it isn't our time. You, you can't decide to opt out for us all".

"You promised your brother Miss DuBois", he reminded her calmly, "That when things got too bad, you would end that little girl's pain. We can end it quickly. All their pain". Merricat was stricken with tumultuous panic, he was insane, he was fucking crazy. He'd lost his mind, being cooped up here all alone. She turned and began to run, but the doctor charged after her, tackling her to the ground.

"Get off of me!" she screamed, kicking frantically, no sword, no weapons, no one to watch her back, nothing to save her. Dr Jenner gripped her tightly, hauling them both to their feet. "It's better this way", he kept repeating it over and over as he dragged her from the big room. "Somebody help, somebody help me!" she cried, but the big room was too far away for anyone to hear her. To be safe, Dr Jenner clamped a hand over her mouth as he fought to bring her into the hallway, ignoring as she bit hard into his skin, ripping his flesh with her teeth. Dr Jenner found the nearest room and threw the girl inside. Before she could jump to her feet, he locked the door behind her, trapping Merricat inside. There was a small window, and she bashed on it frantically with her fists, "Please Dr Jenner!" she begged, "please don't do this!" He looked at her with a sorrowful expression, "It's better this way", he repeated once more, "Don't bother screaming", he informed her, "It's sound proof" before turning to leave. Merricat felt her heart hammering against her chest, "Wait, no, no, no, no! Don't go! Dr Jenner please! Please! Don't do this!" she screamed with all her might. But he didn't so much as glance behind him. He wasn't lying, the room _was_ sound proof. Merricat was gripped with fear, she spun around, raking her hands wildly through her hair. The room was bare, there was nothing she could use to break down the door. She turned again, panting heavily as she ran forward, throwing all her weight against the door. It didn't budge. Again, and again, kicking shoving and punching, but the door didn't give an ounce. She tried to calm herself, she came this way, some of the others are bound to as well. Could they see her from this angle? She thought back to the countdown, dear God, more than twenty minutes must have past, that meant they had only an hour left. What the hell was she going to do, what the hell could she do? Merricat fell to her knees, muttering a prayer, _Please God, please, if not me, please, save them, save Sophie_. Five minutes, ten minutes, a half an hour passed, and Merricat spent it on her knees praying. "Forgive me father for I have sinned", she whispered, what was the point, no one was going to hear her anyway. "I, I have sinned against my family, dishonoured my mother and gather. I, I've lied – too many times to count. I've killed … but worst of all, I failed to protect my girl, I failed to project my blood. Please, please my Lord, if you do not see it right to spare her life, just please, don't let her suffer any pain … she's so innocent, so good. Probably the one good thing left on this earth. Please, heavenly father, watch other her, and Rick, Lori, Carl, Sophia …" she began to choke on her own tears, every member of the group, all their faces, flashed before her eyes. To know people so briefly, and yet to love them all dearly. "Please take care of them", she cried piteously. Her head falling against her chest. This was how she was going to die, alone, caged, with no one in the world. He's been right, _**he**_ was always right. Years ago, he'd prophesised to her, when she was just a little girl, that that was how she would die, and he had been right, he'd been right all along.

A loud eruption of noise pierced through the silence. It sounded like an alarm. Merricat rose to her feet, peering outside the window, red lights flashed in the corridors, and her heart felt as though it was about to explode. It was starting.

More minutes passed, and in that time, she found herself forgiving Dr Jenner, "Maybe it is better this way", she mused lightly. And just when she thought that all hope was lost, that she was done for, she was once more proven utterly and completely wrong. She watched as members of the group poured out of the big room in a panic. Daryl, Glenn, T-Dog, more following at their heels. "Hey, hey!" she screamed, banging frantically. It was Daryl who turned, Daryl who saw her, and Daryl whose heart nearly stopped beating. "Red!" he called, bounding forward with an axe in hand, "What the fuck are you doing in there?"

"Jenner locked me in, this whole building is set to explode!" she shouted frantically. Fucking so much for sound proof.

Daryl's eyes went wide, and he nodded, "Move back!" he told her. He swung the axe, hacking it into the door, once, twice, a third time. Once it was finally weak enough, he kicked it. This was it, she was out.

"Where's Sophie?" she asked him frantically, but he grabbed her roughly by the hand, "Come on!" He brought her back to the entrance of the room, where everyone was waiting. "Sophie!" Merricat cried, and ran to her sister, lifting her up into her arms. She had been crying, her face bright red in fear.

"We've got four minutes left come on!" Glenn shouted, Merricat's sword slung over his back as he held tightly onto Carl. But something horrific happened, Andrea and Jacqui decided to stay. There was no time to argue, they had to leave now. Before Merricat knew otherwise, Daryl was once more clutching tightly at her hand as he pulled her down the corridor, leading both her and Sophie away with the others, she kept glancing back desperately, hoping and praying that they would change their minds, that they would follow them. She just couldn't lose more people. "Let's fucking go Red!" Daryl pressed her, forcing Merricat to pick up her pace, in her left hand she held Sophie, and with her right she clutched Daryl for dear life. They all ran desperately through the blackened corridors, up the back stair wells. Every second was vital.

They made it upstairs, it was chaos, utter chaos as Daryl released her hand and scrambled forward with Shane. They hacked desperately at the windows while T-Dog and Glenn tried every button of the doors. But the doors didn't open, and Daryl and Shane barely scratched the glass. Merricat raised a shaking hand to pat down Sophie's hair, rocking her back and forth. "Are we going to be oaky?" the little girl asked through tears.

Merricat looked at her, "Yes baby", she whispered, "Everything is gonna be okay". In Fourth grade she'd asked her history teacher why some of the parents tucked their children back into bed as the Titanic sank, she didn't get her answer back then, but she had it now as she hugged the little girl closer to her. "Everything is gonna be absolutely fine".

 _He was wrong_. She wasn't going to die alone. He was wrong.

"Rick", Carol called out as she began rummaging through her bag, "I think I might have something that will help".

"Carol, a don't think a nail file is gonna do it", Shane hissed. She blatantly ignored him, "That first morning back in camp, when a washed your clothes. I found this in your pocket". Everyone looked dumbfounded at what she just handed him, a grenade. _A grenade_.

"Everyone get down!" Rick yelled as he yanked out the pin. Merricat clutched Sophie's head as she bolted as far away as she could get, collapsing to the ground as she used her own body to shield her sister. Seconds. Silence. Explosion. Shattering glass. Rick fell on top of Merricat as he was thrown forward, and she pulled him down, narrowly avoiding the worst of the blast.

They ran outside, the cold air hitting against them. Merricat hated to admit it, but she never felt more relieved to see the walkers slowly tailing them, to feel the hot Georgian sun scorching her neck, because it was what it meant to be alive. Glenn tossed her sword, and she immediately caught it, though in her bad hand, that didn't have much effect on her decapitating the walker closest to her as she ran. They headed for their cars, Glenn practically jumping into the drivers seat as Merricat bundled herself and Sophie into the opposite side. To her amazement, and happiness, she cried out to see both Dale and Andrea emerge from the CDC, yes, neither Jacqui nor Dr Jenner was with them, but it was fucking something.

6, 5, 4 "Glenn get down!" she shouted, as they both clambered to get as low as possible. 3, 2, 1.

It wasn't the force, or the sound that was the worst of it. It was the searing heat from the blast. Within seconds the entire facility was lit up in a towering inferno, and the whole thing went crumbling down.

They were scorched, signed, panting breathlessly and scared shitless. But they were alive. They were alive,

And that had to count for something.

 **P.S Sorry if this chapter feels a little rushed, but there was so much to get through. Hopefully I'll get better at pacing it better. Thoughts?**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: I'm really happy with this chapter, because I'm finding it easier to intricate my own story in with the main plot line. I hope you all like it! Also thank you so much to SweetSouthernSass for the lovely review and the favourite! (love the user name by the way!) and to elljayde and mask 14 for the follow!**

 **Also, thank you to AMRS90 for the reviews too! I really appreciate it!**

 **Enjoy (this especially long chapter)!**

 ******TRIGGER WARNING****: There is a detailed account of assault in this chapter that some people might find upsetting, as well as sexually explicit language. It's quite down towards the end, so skip it entirely if it's the sort of thing that might upset you.**

* * *

 _ **Four**_

It turns out that a dress is the least practical item of clothing that you could possibly adorn in the apocalypse. Merricat cursed vigorously as she did her best to conceal the large rip that had formed at the side, essentially exposing the right side of her body as it bellowed embarrassingly in the wind. She had been in the process of attempting to patch it up with multiple safety pins, but rather than pierce through the fabric, the useless pieces of crap preferred to prick the tips of her fingers. "That is, it, that is it!" she finally declared, throwing her hands up in the air in a defeatist manner, "I don't care if I get my throat ripped out in the process, I am gettin' a suitable item of clothing, _**now**_ ".

Glenn looked up from the pharmaceutical aisle, his cheeks tinging red, "I don't know", he smirked awkwardly, "I think it's showing the right amount of skin".

"Yeah, for a hooker", she cringed, and her growing anger was not helped by a stifled laugh from T-Dog emanating from two aisles away. She turned on the balls of her feet, glaring down the man who stood next to Daryl as they shovelled protein bars into their bags, "You got somethin' to say?" she sneered, crossing her arms fiercely over her chest.

"Nothin", he grinned, "Just a funny picture popped into ma head".

Merricat raised an eyebrow, "And may I inquire as to what this humorous image was depicting?"

T-Dog clicked his tongue, "You in a hooker get up".

Merricat scoffed with her mouth twisted into a scowl as she began walking towards the exit of the Walgreens that they had been pilfering.

"Hey where you goin?" Daryl demanded quickly.

Merricat turned over her shoulder, "There's a sports supplies store a few units down, I'm going shopping".

She watched Daryl's face drop into a frown, "We ain't cleared the other units yet", he protested.

She rolled her eyes, unsheathing her sword and twirling it in her hand, "I think I'll be fine, I'll holler if a' need help".

None of the men seemed particularly satisfied with her reasoning, but it was Daryl who continued to press on her. "We ain't here so that you can update your fuckin wardrobe", he snapped, "We're here to get more supplies for camp. An that's that".

Merricat felt the blood heat up in her veins, she was usually rather good at keeping her fiery temper under control, _but that man_ , it was like he his voice alone was enough to strike a nerve in her. She sucked in a breath and turned bracingly. "Yes", she agreed, puffing up her chest, "We are here to get supplies. And last time a' checked, that includes items that we need to function. Now, this, this thing!" she motioned angrily to the frail dress, "Is one tear away from fallin' ta pieces. And unless you want me prancin' around in my goddamn underwear, then a' would very much like to think that suitable clothin' would be counted as supplies".

T-Dog sniggered, Glenn's face went as red as Merricat's hair as he pictured that particular scenario, and Daryl, Daryl looked like he wanted to ram an arrow through her skull and be done with it. Merricat took his silence as submission, and smirked as she once more began walking in the direction of the exit. "An, what if the place is crawlin' with walkers?" he jeered, "An' you go an' get yourself killed?"

Merricat sighed in frustration, "If you're so damn concerned then why don't you come with me?" she exclaimed finally, not bothering to turn around as she spoke, making sure that the door slammed shut loudly behind her.

T-Dog glanced over at the man, "Well go on then", he told him, "Make sure she doesn't go and get eaten by geeks, Glenn and I can finish up in here".

Daryl snorted, but thrust his bag of food into T-Dogs chest, and slung his crossbow begrudgingly over his shoulder, "Goddamn woman", he grumbled as he exited the Walgreens in pursuit of the redhead.

Merricat raised her sword into a guard as she approached the store carefully. A bell attached to the door signalled her entrance, and immediately she was struck with an idea. She began moving the door slowly, back and forth, making the bell ring rather loudly. As Daryl approached he watched the girl with a quizzical look, had she lost her fuckin' mind? Merricat heard the scuffling of feet before she heard the groaning. She backed away from the door, standing guarded behind a stall, two walkers slowly made their way down the aisle, drawn by the sound of the bell. Daryl's eyes went wide as he saw them, but his fears were quickly subdued as Merricat efficiently pierced both of their skulls before they even had the chance to turn towards her. He could see her smile as the two geeks dropped to the ground and she tucked away her sword. Daryl pursed his lips, slightly impressed by her ingenuity, but also annoyed at her insistence in getting clothes, typical broad. He huffed as he entered the store, and Merricat shot him a smile, "Glad you decided to join me".

"Rick wouldn't let me live it down if ya got yourself killed on ma watch", he grunted, "Jus' hurry it up and get whatever it is ya need".

Merricat exhaled heavily through her nose, "The luxury of small mercies is lost on you, isn't it Dixon?" He elected _not_ to answer her, or else they would be there all damn day. Merricat felt excitement bubble in her chest, it seemed ridicules, she knew, but with so much horror and suffering in their lives, the smallest of good things, even if it was something as simple as being able to wear clothes that weren't completely stained with blood, sweat and dirt, was a gift. It just made her feel like a normal human being, even it was for a few brief moments. Her fingers moved over each item of clothing. Most of it was winter apparel, highly unsuitable for a full blown Georgian summer. As she made her way further down to the back of the store, she finally found what she was looking for. She smiled as she picked up the first tank top that she saw, forest green, she held it in her hands and stretched the material, testing its durability. She picked up another two, stuffing them into her bag. Then, Merricat moved to a large folded pile of black denim shorts. She found two pairs that were more or less her size, however she was dismayed at the realisation that she would have to drop yet another dress size. She had to lost at least twenty pounds in the months since she'd been on the road with Sophie, and now that she found herself in a more settled situation, it was beginning to prey more and more on her mind.

Merricat stuffed the extra pair in her bag, along with a few packets of underwear and a couple of sports bras, more than happy to share them with the rest of the women back in camp. Once satisfied with her finds, Merricat found a small changing room at the back of the store. Delighted to finally be rid of the hated dress, she changed into the much more apocalypse suited outfit. As she was making her way back to Daryl, she picked up a few scrunchies, and quickly tied up her rather pesky hair. It was almost reaching her lower back now, a fact she would have been thrilled at a year ago, now, it was just a nuisance. Then, something else caught her eye. Hanging on one of far off walls on a high hook, was a jumbo set of twenty-four arrows. They resembled the ones used by Daryl closely enough, and so she took the initiative to find a stool and pluck them from the wall. She had to tell herself that it wasn't stealing, the proprietors of the store were either dead or long gone, hell, they could've even been the walkers that she put down. Besides, money wasn't the currency of the world anymore. Merricat found Daryl inspecting a Leather vest on a rack among some other sale items. She couldn't help but smirk as she kept the arrows hidden behind her back, "See something you like?"

Daryl practically jumped at her words, and turned rapidly to face her, his face flushed in annoyance as he threw the vest to the ground. He wanted to wipe the damn grin off of her face, and snapped rather irritably, "Wasn't it you that said that sneakin' up on people is a pretty dumbass way ta get yourself killed?"

Merricat hummed in response, "Find anything else here?"

Daryl shrugged his shoulders, "Few knife and guns holsters, most of this place has been cleaned out of anythin' useful".

"You sure about that?" she grinned knowingly, and Daryl felt his stomach tense at her expression, clearly, she knew something that he didn't.

"What?" he asked impatiently, glaring the girl down.

Her smile only widened, "Cause, if that's the case, you probably wouldn't be wantin' these then", and she held up the pack of arrows. Daryl didn't know how to respond, his expression as unreadable as ever. Instead, he waited for Merricat to speak, to act, to gage what she would do. "Well go on, take em, you'll get more use outta them than anyone", and she held them out for him. Daryl took the arrows cautiously from her, emptying them into his own quiver, "We should get back ta Glenn and T", he told her gruffly. Merricat nodded, fixing her scabbard onto her new belt as they walked. However, just as she was about to follow him out the door, Merricat glanced back at the sales rack, biting the inner part of her cheek _. I don't know why I even bother_ , she thought to herself as she dashed back and grabbed the leather vest that Daryl had been eyeing up, stuffing it into her bag.

"Ya comin' Red?" Daryl called impatiently from outside.

"Coming!" she hollered back, before taking one final glance of the store.

"You look like Lara Croft", Glenn stated upon seeing Merricat, she laughed, and did a quick spin, "And here is Mary Katherine DuBois, modelling the latest in the apocalypse apparel line – perfect for all your end of the world needs", she spoke in an announcer's voice, rising a laugh from T-Dog. They had filled five shopping bags with goods – it was the best luck that they had had in days – ever since leaving the CDC. Before their jackpot find, most of the places that they searched in their runs had already been picked clean.

"You guys managed to get that prescription room opened yet?" Daryl asked, motioning towards the sealed window on the opposite end of the store.

"Naw, hoping we could borrow that steel of yours Spitfire", T-Dog gestured to the sword hanging at Merricat's hips. She hesitated a moment but gave it to him anyhow. "You break it and I break you", she warned him, and the man nodded in response, "Yes ma'am".

Daryl and T-Dog managed to pry the window open, and the four of them hoped inside, "Be ruthless gents, Antibiotics, Antihistamines, Oral rehydration salts, Anti inflammatories, vitamin supplements too if yah can find them", Merricat smiled as they began spilling into the aisles. She scanned every row, reading every label. She wouldn't reveal to the others what she was looking for. Carbamazepine, or Clobazam, hell even Phenobarbital if she could find it. She glanced up anxiously as she watched Glenn and T-Dog empty whole shelves into their bags, they were occupied, she could keep looking. Merricat picked up a box of Phenytoin and scanned the back carefully. She'd never tried it before, but hell, as Dale often reminded her; beggars could not be choosers. She began to throw box after box of the medication into her nearly full bag, trying to squeeze as many in as possible. It was always best to salvage as much as you could, you never know when you would get that lucky again.

"What you gettin' those for?" Merricat flinched as she rapidly threw bag behind her back. "Nothin", she replied sharply as Daryl gave her a rather unconvinced look. Hell, and he said that _she_ lived to piss _him_ off? It seemed that whatever she did, Daryl was always there to stir up trouble. He raised his eyebrows, "Well clearly they ain't nothin", he grunted as he quickly manoeuvred the bag from her grasp, holding up one of the boxes of pills. He squinted, moving his lips slowly as he read the label, "The fuck is this?"

"Would you keep your voice down?" Merricat hissed, taking another glance over to the boys, who thankfully, still seemed pretty preoccupied.

"What are they?" he demanded again.

Merricat huffed angrily but pulled him roughly by the shoulder so that he was closer to her, not wanting the others to hear. "They're anticonvulsants, _alright_?" she growled in a whisper, annoyance thick in her words.

Daryl gave her a look of confusion, and Merricat found herself explaining bitterly, "They stop you from having seizures".

Daryl's eyes widened, his mouth dropping. Usually, it was entirely impossible to gage Daryl's emotions (well, any emotion other than anger) from his face. He was very good at keeping a cool, expressionless exterior when his temper was kept at bay. But for a fleeting second, the woman in front of him saw guilt, and sympathy – emotions that prior to that moment, she had been convinced that the irritable man was unable to feel. Merricat for once didn't know how to react, her usual go-to response to him was typically sarcastic or ridiculing in nature, she didn't know how to deal with him actually being – God, _understanding_ to her? Daryl seemed at a loss at how to go about dealing with the girl, clearly uncomfortably, he merely placed the box back into her bag, handing it back to her sheepishly. "Thanks", she muttered, "just, _please_ don't say anythin". Daryl nodded, shuffling on his feet, "We best be goin', we've been away from the convoy too long".

"Yeah", she agreed, and turned to the two men. "Hey, tweedle dee and tweedle dumb, let's grab our shit and move out!"

"Yes ma'am!" T-Dog called happily, and they all took an extra bag each as well as their own, Merricat felt the excitement rise in her chest, just imagining the look on everyone's faces when they saw them return with their bounteous prize, it was like carrying a treasure trove. They came into little trouble as they made it back to their vehicles, well, Merricat's Cadillac and Daryl's bike. Their cars had been thinned down to that, Rick and Carol's cars, and the RV. Like she said, the road from the CDC had not been kind to them. They loaded her trunk, Glenn taking his normal seat in the passenger side, and T-Dog hopped in the back. She gave Daryl a nod as he climbed onto his bike, and she herself plopped down behind the wheel.

Daryl drove only slightly ahead, keeping close to the Cadillac. The camp had found temporary sanctuary in a clearing in a long-abandoned nature reserve, the animals had fled, and the once well-kept flora and fauna had grown to overtake most of the leisure facilities. Rick wanted them on the move as soon as possible however, Fort Benning was now the plan of action. But, after the fiasco that had been their stint at the CDC, it was clear that no one was holding out much hope.

"You ain't got no tapes or nothin, it's killin' me just listened ta static", T-Dog huffed, he lay stretched out over the backseats, hands tucked in behind his head.

"Glenn check under your seat there", she instructed the young man, who did as she asked. There were only a few, just things she had picked up on route from Louisiana to Georgia. Glenn held them in his hands and began reading out the titles. "Ah, Guns n' Roses, Metallica, Kansas, Led Zeppelin –

"Jesus if a didn't know you, I'd say that you're more white trash than Dixon", T-Dog, "Ain't no one ever introduced you to _good_ music".

Merricat glared at him through her rear-view mirror, "You watch your mouth", she warned him, "Or else I'll wash It out with soap. There'll be no _blasphemy_ in maw car". And with that she picked up the Kansas tape, pushing it into the player,

 _ **I close my eyes, only for a moment, and the moment's gone**_

 _ **All my dreams pass before my eyes, a curiosity**_

 _ **Dust in the wind**_

 _ **All they are is dust in the wind**_

Merricat made sure to sing along as loudly and as obnoxiously as her lungs would allow her, T-Dog resigning himself to groan in the background. Both Glenn and she began to laugh, the whole atmosphere was one of giddiness. They weren't going back emptyhanded, they wouldn't have to face hungry mouths and disappointed eyes, perhaps their luck was finally beginning to change.

If only fate were that kind.

Merricat watched the scene unfold in horror. A man dashed out from amongst the trees straight onto the road, waving his arms frantically like a madman. Daryl swerved fiercely, his bike going onto it's side. Merricat jerked the wheel as hard as she could as she slammed down on the brakes with all her might. The car turned violently, and she cried out as her head collided with the dashboard, and she struggled blindly to maintain control, she held onto the steering wheel for all it was worth, knuckles going white and her face turning red. The car began to shake, and for a godawful moment, she thought it was going to _flip_. But instead it pummelled off the road, the sloping uneven mounds of earth and grass finally slowing it to a sharp halt.

The trio were in shock, panting heavily, Merricat was shaking all over, half convinced that all her organs had been rearranged in the turmoil. She glanced to Glenn, then to T-Dog, they looked as shaken as her, but they were alive. "You guys okay?" she trembled, her heart beating violently against her chest.

"I'm a'right", T-Dog managed to gasp, clutching his side.

"Me too", Glenn was barely able to whisper, before having to turn quickly to throw up the contents of his stomach onto the side of the road.

Her thoughts immediately turned to Daryl, and instantly she thought the worst. She grasped for the door handle, but her trembling hands took two attempts to take an actual hold. She hauled herself from the car, every muscle in her body felt ready to give. She saw that Daryl seemed to be perfectly fine … as he stood to full height, holding the man who had caused the crash at gunpoint. "Daryl!" she croaked feebly as she hobbled in his direction, he glanced over at her, you could see the pure fury etched upon his face, but for once, it wasn't directed at her. He turned quickly back to the man, who had his arms raised up to the sky, he looked petrified, his face caked with dirt and sweat. Merricat managed to reach Daryl's side, ignoring the man, she raised a weary hand to his shoulder. "Are, are you okay?" Up close Merricat could see that Daryl's left cheek was scraped, blood exposed with bits of gravel stuck to his skin, other than that, there seemed to be no severe damage. He stole another glance at the woman, his heart missing a beat, "Jesus, am I aight? Have ya looked at yourself?" he told her, his voice dripping with concern. Her eyebrows knitted together as she reached her fingers up to her face, she didn't feel like anything was wrong, how could she have – her stomach dropped when she felt the familiar warm liquid on her fingertips, she raised her hand to see the blood. "It's, it's only a nick", she tried to both reassure Daryl and herself, "Must'a been when a hit maw head".

"I'm, I'm so sorry", the pair tensed as they heard the man spoke. Merricat was snapped back into reality, they had bigger concerns to be dealing with. She immediately unsheathed her sword and raised it high, even though it pained her to do so, it's point hovering over the man's jugular. She glared hatefully at him, "Are out of your fucking mind?" she hissed, "You could 'a killed us!"

"I, I didn't mean, I was just trying to get your attention, my friend, he's really hurt. You're the first people we have heard in _days_. I was desperate", he spluttered, Merricat's distrust was not helped by his undeniable accent, that was a northern one, meaning, they were along way from home.

"So, you reckoned it would be a helluva smart idea to jump in front of a fuckin bike?" Daryl snarled, clearly as infuriated as she was.

"We've been out here for days, no food, no water. With corpses coming at us every other night. I, I didn't know what else to do", the man pleaded.

"Was' goin on here?" both T-Dog and Glenn approached them, it was clear to see that they were pretty shaken up.

"There are more of you", The man looked at them hopefully, "Do you guys have a camp…"

"Yeah, we do, we – Glenn had begun to speak, but Merricat shot him a death glare to silence the boy. He was too damn trusting. "What he means", she added, "That we are travelin' with people, but that don't concern you".

The man, should she even call him that? He looked barely older than herself and Glenn, looked at her pleadingly, "Please, we have nowhere else to go and –

"The woman said that it don't concern you", Daryl repeated, keeping his crossbow aimed high.

Glenn, looked at his two companions, then to the man, "What do you mean, _we_?"

"My, my friend, Andre, he twisted his ankle, he can't walk on it", The man explained, stumbling over his words at a rapidly fast pace.

Glenn stared at Daryl, then once more to Merricat, "Well we have to help them!" he announced, and the man's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Like hell", Daryl snarled, "You shut your mouth", he pointed to Glenn.

"Glenn's right man, don't feel right to leave em' out here", T-Dog reasoned, "ain't that right Spitfire? You know Rick, you know he would wanna talk to em, at least". Merricat felt torn, she would be the first to admit that she was weary around him, she didn't like the prospect of bringing these new strangers into the camp. But at the same time … was she herself not a stranger not too long ago? They took her in, mended her wounds, looked after Sophie while she was unconscious, provided them shelter without hesitation. Who was she to deny these men that same chance? She looked to Daryl, who sensed her hesitation, "Well?" she asked him, eagerly seeking his opinion on the matter.

He dropped his crossbow, grimacing as he did so. "I don't like it, don't like him, don't like the fact that this damn Yankee near got you, an everyone else killed. But, Rick put you in charge of this run, is' your call ta make Red".

She sighed heavily, rubbing her temples which throbbed terribly. "Alright, alright", she conceded, "We'll, we'll bring them back to camp, get this other guy patched up. But we'll leave it up to Rick to decide what to do with them". Glenn smiled, and T-Dog clapped her approvingly on the shoulder. She tucked away her sword, already regretting her decision. The man beamed at her, "Thank you, thank you so much, you have no idea what you are doing for us".

"Don't thank me yet", she replied sternly, "T, Glenn, go get, this Andre guy, bring em both back. I need to find out whether or not we'll be walkin back to camp", she cautioned, gesturing towards her car, which worryingly, had smoke pouring out of the engine. Merricat then turned to Glenn, who was without a gun, taking out her sword and handing it to him, "Take this, he gives you any trouble – any at all. Swing first and ask questions later, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear", he nodded, handling it with care. Despite the circumstances, she couldn't help but smirk slightly when he immediately began to struggle with the weapon's weight, "Damn, you make it look so easy", he complained, and the pair began walking off with the man.

Once they were out of sight, the woman sighed heavily, raking a hand miserably through her hair, "Just when a thought things were actually startin' to look up", she grumbled.

"Shit never looks up, jus' looks less shitty", Daryl commented, but approached her carefully, "You sure bout this Red, bringin' back even more mouths ta feed, seems ta me like more trouble than it's worth".

Merricat met his concerned eyes, not helping but to smile a little, "You brought Sophie and me back with you, weren't _we_ just more mouths to feed?"

He grunted, "At' was different, a different situation, you an' at kid wouldn't have lasted another five minutes on your own".

Merricat's grin only lengthened as she raised a brow. "Is that so?" she quipped, "Cause if I remember correctly, I was badly incapacitated due to a certain kind of fin-stabilised projectile being lodged into maw shoulder".

"Aight, aight", he silenced her quickly, "Ya proved your point, no need to keep hawkin' on, let's get this car looked at now".

"It's just the radiator over heatin, it'll be fine", Daryl assured her.

"Oh, it better be", she grunted, "Or else I'm gonna have to borrow that crossbow of yours to put an arrow in that damn fool's head".

"It's just a car", he replied snappily with a slam of the hood. Merricat flinched as if physically wounded, "Just a car", she seethed, "That is _my baby_. I have had Blanche since I was fifteen -years-of age. We've been through hell and back together, and I am not gonna lose her now, no sir". Daryl stared at the young woman with an unquestioning expression of surprise, he had to stifle his smile, "You named your car?" he asked, almost in disbelief.

"Hello", she sang, as though the meaning was obvious. "DuBois. Blanche DuBois – from A streetcar named desire". Her mouth fell open as Daryl looked at her with a blank gaze, totally unphased by the connection.

"Tennessee Williams?" she gasped, "You've honestly _never_ heard of it?" She then thought, and cupped her hands over her mouth and yelled, "Stella, Stella!" hoping that the famous line would jog his memory.

Daryl simply shrugged his shoulder as the woman continued to gawk at him. "The movie", she persisted, "You must have even heard of the movie! Vivien Leigh – Marlon Brando! It's an American classic!"

"You say that like its meant ta mean somethin", he surmised flatly.

Merricat could simply not believe it, where had he been living before the apocalypse, under a rock? She walked forward, and overdramatically clasped Daryl's hands into her own, he looked absolutely petrified at the gesture, and almost jumped back at the moment he felt her warm skin on his. "Daryl Dixon, I am makin' you a solemn oath", she exulted, "No matter where we end up in this apocalypse, I swear to you, even if I have to sacrifice my life in the process, I am going to introduce you to the motion picture magic that is, a streetcar named desire!" He finally understood that she was being light-hearted with him, but Daryl still felt too terrified to move in the situation, he glanced around quickly, looking for _anything_ that he could use to change the subject and once more put a comfortable distance between them.

"How did ya hit your head anyhow?" he asked abruptly, being reminded only by the dried blood on the right side of her face.

"Oh!" she laughed, untangling her hands from his, completely unaware of his discomfort, "Well, when a pulled the breaks she jerked somethin fierce, I whacked my head off the dashboard", she admitted, almost as though embarrassed.

Daryl furrowed his brows, "You weren't wearin' a seatbelt?" he pried, and Merricat nodded with sheepish smile, "Well next time don't be so damn stupid and wear the thing, or you won't get so lucky and go flyin' through the windscreen".

"Yes, _daddy_ ", she mocked, her lips drawing into a thin line when she saw the smaller group of men stumble out from the woods. Glenn was leading them, with T and the other man holding Andre up by the arms. "Here comes trouble", she muttered.

"An we're bringing it right back with us", he reminded her.

T and Glenn hauled a bumbling Andre into the car, he just kept repeating "Thank you, thank you", over and over, it was as touching as it was irritating. The man turned to Merricat, "Thank you so much, Glenn said it was Merricat?"

" _Mary Katherine_ ", she corrected sharply, she didn't want him to address her by something so familiar.

"Mary Katherine", he repeated with a smile, "You're saving our lives". She eyed him up and down, he was tall, taller than Daryl and Glenn, but leaner. His hair was a sandy blonde, and his eyes a deep shade of brown. She could tell instantly he was, as Daryl already had identified, from up north, Providence maybe. From new money – judging by the way he spoke and carried himself. "I'm Logan by the way", he attempted to smile warmly at her, and offered his hand as if to shake. Merricat took it wearily, but to her surprise, he raised her hand to his lips and kissed it gently. "Excuse me!" she breathed, completely taken off guard by the action. Her whole body tensed as she retracted her hand quickly. "Apologies", he complimented, "It's just so rare nowadays to meet such a beautiful girl". _Woman_ , she corrected him internally, she was not a little girl. She didn't know what to make of such a statement, first of all because in Merricat's mind it was grossly untrue, second of all, well _hell_ , she just wasn't used to it. She coughed uncomfortably, "We best me movin on, our convoy has been expecting us back a while now".

"Of course", he replied, and began walking towards the Cadillac, happily taking the front passenger's seat. Merricat followed, glancing up to see Daryl hauling up his motorcycle with a luck of disgust etched upon his face, clearly having witnessed the whole thing.

T had propped Andre in the back, who took up half of the space with his leg, leaving barely any room for T-Dog himself. Merricat assessed the situation quickly, "Shit", she snapped, "How are we gonna work this?" Clearly there was not enough room to fit all of them. "There's plenty a room on my lap", T joked, which only earnt him a stern look from Merricat. Glenn had surprisingly already buckled himself into the driver's seat, and the woman was most certainly not having it, "And what in heaven's name do you think you're doing?" she asked him.

"You hit your head pretty hard Merricat", he stuttered, "I don't think it's a good idea for you to be driving".

"I'm _fine_ ", she seethed, crossing her arms tightly over her chest in protest. When it became evident that Glenn Rhee could be just as stubborn as her, she finally scoffed, "So where the hell am I supposed to go, in the trunk?"

"You're ridin' with me", Merricat almost jumped out of her skin, and she turned around quickly, how the hell was Daryl so goddamn quiet?

"Jesus Christ", she gasped, "A thought we had come to a mutual understandin' bout sneakin' up on people!"

He didn't so much as crack a smile, "Come on en', we've been waitin' around too damn long". Merricat at first felt shocked by the mere suggestion, and then, anxiety. She'd never had the occasion in her whole life to physically ride a motorcycle, and the prospect was not particularly appealing. She glanced at the Cadillac once more, T-Dog's lap or Daryl's bike, such wonderful choices she had to make. She sighed and turned to follow Daryl. She was extremely hesitant, not exactly sure how to go about it. Daryl gave her an odd look, "Hurry up now, we don't got all day".

"So, a just sit behind ya?" Merricat understood how utterly stupid the question made her sound, but again, she wasn't accustomed to such things. He raised an eyebrow, "No you sit on the handle bars", he replied sarcastically. "No need to be a dick about it", she chided miserably, but awkwardly climbed onto the back as he handed her his crossbow. She slung it carefully around her shoulders, _damn_ , _the thing was a ton weight_. Merricat wouldn't lie, it felt extremely foreign to be that close to another person that wasn't Sophie, it was a strange experience. "Hold on", he instructed her, before revving the machine into life, and taking off at full speed without warning. "Shit!" she screamed, and immediately wrapped her arms tightly around the man's waist.

Merricat never imagined that you would actually feel how fast you were going on a bike, she had pictured it like a train, travelling fast, but not actually feeling it go by. The wind whipping her body, the vibrations of the engine, she could feel it all. Once the fear had dispersed, it felt, exhilarating in a way. For the first fifteen minutes of the journey, Merricat had buried her face rigidly into the back of Daryl's shirt, but now, with curiosity and courage egging her on, she felt brave enough to raise her head slightly. She sure as hell didn't regret doing so. There was something about the wind hitting her face at breakneck speed, to see the world going past in one big colourful zoom, God, it made her feel alive. She didn't know what caused it, but she began to laugh lightly, almost mesmerized by the experience. Daryl glanced for a second over his shoulder, watching the girl who seemed in awe, as she slowly raised her left arm to let it roller-coaster against the wind. Daryl allowed himself a small smirk before he accelerated sharply, and Merricat screamed before once more clutching his shoulders for dear life, "Jerk!" she screamed into his ear. He took no notice, and they continued to ride down the highway.

Everyone in camp heard them coming before they saw them. Dale, as normal, was lookout atop the RV, only this time with Andrea seated on the roof next to him. "Incoming!" he shouted. Rick emerged from his tent, he and Lori had taken the opportunity to spend some much-needed quality time with one another … which was rare enough with everyone around. Relief washed over him, though he knew that the four of them, Merricat, Daryl, T-Dog and Glenn, could more than look after themselves, it was always a comfort to see them come back in one piece. He walked over to greet them and found it an odd sight indeed to see Daryl pull up on his brother's motorcycle with Merricat hugging his back. He glanced at the Cadillac, frowning to see a stranger sitting next to Glenn, and a second sitting next to T-Dog in the back. He waited until Merricat approached him before he started wanting answered. "A hope you brought more than just more people", he told her, and Merricat raised her hands in defeat, "I know, I know, we just, couldn't leave em out there", she sighed.

"For the record, a still think it was a dumbass idea", Daryl remarked as he made his way over to the car to begin hauling out the supplies. Merricat glared at him, before turning her attention back to the Sheriff, "If it's any conciliation, we got a lot, a helluva lotta meds, food, stuff we desperately needed", she informed them, "Those two", she pointed over to both Logan and Andre, who had already emerged from the car, "We found them out on the road. Now, a already warned them, I said that a could give no guarantees on what we could do for them, or if they could stay, that's your call Rick, I'll back you up – whatever way you decide to go".

"Well, what do you make of them?" Rick asked, and Merricat scratched the nape of her neck, "Honestly, I don't know. I mean, y'all took me and Sophie in without knowing us well, and a wouldn't want to deprive anyone else of the kindness that you all provided, but … There's just something nagging at my gut, making me hesitate", she replied.

Rick nodded, "I'll have Shane and I talk with them, we'll see where we go from there", he decided, and his demeanour went a bit letter once he saw the number of bags of supplies that T-Dog and Daryl removed from the trunk. "Looks like you did good", he praised her.

"Can't take all the credit", she smiled in return, "All of them did good".

"So you still ain't harbouring homicidal tendencies towards Dixon?" Rick smirked, and Merricat rolled her eyes, "Just, gimme time", she winked, and made off in the direction of her tent.

She smiled as she saw Sophie, who was happy as a pig in mud as she sat in the midst of an imaginary tea party with the few toys that she had left. "May I join?" Merricat grinned, and her sister spun round in delight. "Merricat!" she chirped happily and bounded forward to throw her arms around her. "You were gone so long!"

"I know baby", the woman cooed, "But we got lot's a things, more food, we'll have a big dinner tonight".

"But a just ate", Sophie complained, "Barbie and I just finished off a whole chocolate cake between us!"

Merricat wagged her head, chuckling softly. "Why you got Mr Dixon's bow?" The question came out of nowhere, and Merricat looked up to see that Daryl's crossbow was still tightly strapped over her shoulders. "I was minding it for him", she answered briskly.

"But shouldn't you give it back?"

Merricat gave her sister a look, "Yes. In fact, that is what am gonna go do right now".

"Ooh can I come?" Sophie asked in excitement as she jumped to her feet, Barbie and chocolate cake long forgotten, "I wanna go say hi to Mr Dixon".

"Alright, alright", Merricat smiled, "Come on then", and she outstretched her hand which her sister took gladly.

She found him sitting outside the RV, he never quite liked being inside it, not since the business with Jim. "Hey!" she called cheerfully, Daryl looked up to see the two sisters approach him, Sophie was per usual, was skipping rather than walking. Merricat smiled, "Thought you might want this back", and she handed him over his crossbow.

"Did you have a good trip Mr Dixon?" Sophie asked him, greeted the man with an impossibly humongous grin. He gave the little girl a once over, "Now, you an' I both know that is not what ya came here to ask me about", he told her plainly, and Sophie's cheeks blushed a deeper shade of red than her sister's hair. Merricat looked between the two of them, totally clueless. Sophie shuffled on her feet, "Well, did yah find any?" she asked meekly. Daryl maintained the same expression as he dug into his back pocket, retrieving a small brown plastic bag. Suddenly, Merricat couldn't believe her eyes when he actually smiled at her sister, "Hershey's kisses, as promised", and he tossed them to the girl who squealed in delight. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" and she dashed forward to hug the man, and quickly scurried off before her sister could stop her guzzling down the confectionary. Merricat meanwhile was left in a state of catatonic shock. Her jaw had practically hit the ground as she goggled at the man. "Seriously?" she marvelled, "And y'all call _me_ the softie".

"Only way to stop her from naggin' me all'a time", he replied.

Merricat shook her head with a chuckle, "You never cease to amaze me Dixon". He observed the girl closely, not knowing upon whether or not take it as a compliment or not. A moment of comfortable silenced passed between the two, although somewhat of a hot-head, (to put it mildly) Merricat had come to find that Daryl was a pretty reserved person, these kinds of moments of quietness were normal when around him. But of course a good thing never lasts long.

Sophie screamed, and ran back in the direction of her sister, who bolted forward to catch her in her arms, "What's wrong?" Merricat asked frantically, holding her tightly. Daryl glanced anxiously over the child and gritted his teeth together as he saw that good for nothin' Yankee was walking towards them. "Sorry", he exclaimed with an idiotically large smile, "I didn't mean to frighten you". Merricat instinctively took three steps back, "What the hell did you do to maw sister?" she snarled.

"I just said hi", Logan tried to defend himself, "Guess the little tyke isn't comfortable around strangers huh?"

"I don't like him", Sophie whined, burying her head into her sister's neck, "Make him go away".

"I think you best go check on your friend", Merricat cautioned him.

"Oh come on now, you just got to get to know me kid, I don't bite", Logan tried to reach forward to ruffle Sophie's hair, but it was Daryl who stopped him, taking a tight grip on his arm before shoving him roughly to the side, "You got a listenin' problem or som', she said beat it".

Logan looked shocked, and eyed the man up and down, "Okay then", he shrugged, "I'll catch you later _Merricat_ ". She turned up her nose, picking up on the emphasis of her nickname.

"A don't trust that son'bitch, not one bit", Daryl growled.

"He says your name like daddy did", Sophie commented in fear, looking towards her sister for comfort. "Yeah", Merricat agreed quietly, "I noticed".

* * *

Merricat and Rick had a busy afternoon ahead of them. First was the tedious business of rationing their supplies, trying to find the most efficient way of making everything last as long as possible, "Spreading the cost", the Sheriff had joked. Then, they had the pleasure of cleaning every gun that they had, Rick insisted on it. They couldn't get sloppy, couldn't risk a gun jamming in the middle of trouble. Finally, to Merricat's relief, it came their turn to patrol the area. T-Dog, Glenn and Daryl had been given the opportunity to relax after that morning's successful run, they had earned it. Merricat had been encouraged to do the same, but she had adamantly declined. They couldn't get sloppy, hell, neither could she. Really, she just could not relax. Never was there a second of the day that the young woman not on high alert. Even when they sat by the low burning fire at night, a plate of food in hand and with Sophie nestled into her side, talking light-heartedly and making corny jokes, her hand always lingered over the pummel of her sword, always ready, ready and waiting for the next hurdle to be thrown their way. But patrol was her favourite chore. She loved the chance to stretch her legs, to feel productive in ensuring their safety – especially when it was in a more wooded area. Merricat felt safer in the woods, she knew how to conduct herself their best. Where to find food, where it was safe to sleep. She knew how to hide herself amongst the trees, how to use very boulder, every stream, every dense patch of brush to her advantage. It was a comfort to Merricat, like Sophie and her old, worn pink blanket.

"Damn I wish I still had my bow", Merricat frowned as she spotted rabbits darting in-between the trees, "Could 'a caught some game for tonight's supper".

Rick smiled at the girl, "We could set some traps tomorrow when we have more light, or send Daryl out this way", he suggested.

Merricat hummed, slinging her rifle over her shoulder. She was as good with a gun as she was her sword, arguably better in some respects. But she had come to find that a sword was a better-suited weapon, it was quiet, you didn't have to stop to reload, and it was handy if you found yourself cornered. But Rick insisted that she carried a gun whilst patrolling. "If I had a damn silencer", she continued to grumble, "I'd be able to hit em' from here, wouldn't have to worry about any walkers hearing it too".

Rick raised an eyebrow, "A fast target like that is difficult to hit".

"You've yet to realise it", she smirked, "But I am one _hell_ of a shot".

"I'll take your word for it".

They continued to scout around the perimeter around the camp. Silent for a while, just happy to enjoy each other's company. Merricat had grown extremely found of Rick, he and Lori – Carl too. The man was kind, honest, and loyal. She couldn't bring herself to say that she trusted him, so she hoped that it went without saying. He most definitely trusted her, after Shane, Merricat was the person he turned to when he needed help, advice, hell he confided everything in her. Nothing was too trivial to approach her with, because she would listen, and wouldn't judge him, or break his confidence. Merricat told him how it was, not what he wanted to hear.

"You think Shane's been alright recently?" he asked her abruptly, nothing had prompted the question, but it was out there nonetheless.

"I can't really comment", she replied, "I have nothing to compare with, I haven't known him long".

Rick nodded in acknowledgment, but pressed further, "He just … since the CDC, he's been a lot quieter, yeah know? More reserved, I can't put my finger on it, but it's like, God, I don't know what it's like", he stopped for a moment, rubbing the nape of his neck, "An' you, I can see that you've been avoiding him Merr, you only speak to him when you have to. Dale, Glenn, T-Dog, even Daryl – you've no qualms in working with them. But, if I ever ask you and him to patrol, to scout ahead on the roads together, I see you freeze up". Merricat felt cornered, he was observant, she'll give him that, but she didn't like being put on the spot, particularly because she was conflicted over how to respond. She didn't want to break anyone's trust, clearly Lori had not told Rick about what happened in the CDC, and that was her business and Merricat knew that she had to respect that … but maybe she wouldn't say anything because she was _afraid_. What if Shane had threatened her? Or what if she felt that they had other, far more pressing problems, and that it would be better to remain silent rather than cause a rift within the group. Or even possibly, maybe Merricat didn't have the full picture. Maybe it had just been a simple spat, just a fight between friends. It was possible, but Merricat's gut told her otherwise. She had seen the look in Lori's eyes, it was unmistakable. Rick must have sensed her discomfort at her elongated silence, "It's not just you", he continued, "Lori's the same way, hell, even Shane's acting out of character. It's just, just concerning me, that's all".

Merricat bit her lip, surely it wasn't a slight against Lori if she only told Rick what she had saw. She wouldn't comment, give her opinion, she would let Rick make of it what he would. "A honestly can't say much", she began, "I do know, that, that Lori and Shane had some kinda altercation that first night in the CDC".

"Altercation?" he repeated, eyes widening in alarm, "What _kind_ of altercation?"

Merricat felt her intestines loop themselves into tight knots as she hesitated, "In the rec room, we were just coming in when we saw Shane storm out, and inside Lori seemed really shook up. But she wouldn't say anything, she just left straight after".

"And you only thought to tell this to me _now_?" you could hear the anger rising in Rick's voice.

"I, I didn't think it was my place", Merricat stammered, her sentences running in together. Too many familiar feelings flooding back to her. She didn't want to upset him, but she had, and it was all her fault, oh God it was all her fault! All her fault. She'd been so stupid, stupid, stupid girl. "I, guess I thought if it was somethin' serious, that Lori would have come to you herself. I didn't think – Jesus Christ I didn't think!" Merricat felt herself become distraught as she heard that familiar voice sneer inside her ear; _Look what you've gone and done now girl. Can't you do_ _ **anything**_ _right? Are you lacking something, huh? Stupid little_ _ **whore**_ _._ She'd disappointed him, she could see it in Rick's face, well, that's what she thought she saw, what she missed entirely was his look of concern towards the girl. "Hey, hey, hey", he tried to calm her, placing a firm hand on her shoulder, "It's alright Merricat, you hear me, it's _alright_. You ain't done anything, okay? Look at me", and she did, those cabbage-patch eyes, one green, one brown, looked at him with a frightened gaze. "It's okay".

Her reaction had worried Rick, because it displayed a pattern that he was quickly picking up on. At one time, the young woman was cool, calm and collected – she was smart, could keep her head in a bad situation, she was a fighter. But sometimes, the simplest thing would throw her off. He knew that she had nightmares and did her best not to sleep until she completely exhausted herself. Whatever it was that she saw at night, it clearly _petrified_ her. She would become anxious, she would do the same job one hundred times over, whether it was something as simple as washing one of their garments or patrolling the area over and over. Merricat wouldn't allow Sophie from her sight, and it was in these times that she was more determined than ever to stay as far away from Shane as possible. Yes, she didn't let it interfere with her role, or duties in camp – but it was clear that something was troubling her, always gnawing at the back of her mind.

Merricat looked at him, blinking back the memories. The angry scowl that her mind had painted onto Rick's face had faded away, now she could see the concern, the worry. She could see things as they where again. Merricat coughed, feeling utterly humiliated to have allowed herself to become so worked up. "I'm sorry", she apologised, "I, I can't stand it when I screw things up, I, I don't want ta let you down Rick".

"And you haven't", he affirmed, "Like you said, you didn't think it was your place. And you were right, if it was something serious, Lori would have told me. It's okay Merricat, you know I trust your judgement".

Merricat sighed, shaking her head, "I just, I just feel like I have to feel that I have to do absolutely everything that I can do protect this group – you have no idea what you have done for us – being with you all, it's made me feel _hopeful_ again. I can actually begin to picture Sophie growing up with y'all, thriving, not living on the brink anymore".

"And that's how it was before?" he asked quietly.

The young woman nodded, "After Ashley … I, Jesus I hate to say it, I felt free – free to try an actual improve Sophie an I's situation. He refused to let us make a proper camp, find supplies, just made us keep driving all the time, like he was just, just waiting for us to die. That's what it was … in the end, he got fed up waitin".

"Well, here's the thing. We aren't going to give up. Not ever. We will find a place, or we'll make one of our own. You're never going to feel like that or live like that again. You hear me?" Rick told her assertively.

Merricat smiled faintly, "Don't make promises that ya can't keep Grimes, people get in alotta trouble that way".

* * *

By the time that they had gotten back to camp, the sun was much lower in the sky. The air was thick with midges and other pesky winged bugs. Everything was hot and sticky, a typical summer evening in Georgia. Lori already had a fire going, Andrea watched on as she and Carol cooked and spoke softly to one another. Andrea sat further from them, a vacant expression etched upon her face. Merricat eyed her with concern, she'd barely spoken four words since leaving the CDC, she no longer helped with the women's chores, she just sat day in and out, staring off into the distance. The woman immediately frowned when she saw that they were joined at the fire by Glenn, T-Dog and the two newcomers. T-Dog and Glenn joked and laughed with one another, slugging their canteens of water, whilst Logan and Andre smiled and nodded along pleasantly. "Lori", she called over, still clutching her rifle tightly to her chest, "Sophie?"

"In your tent", she answered, "Hasn't made a peep since you left". Merricat nodded her thanks and made a bee line in that direction. She waved to Carl as she passed, and he smiled up from his well-worn comic. She unzipped the flap, the inside was like a hot box, and she found her sister curled up in the corner. "Sophie?" she called out, nudging her shoulder gently, "You asleep at this time?"

"Naw", Sophie mumbled into her sleeping bag, "Maw head hurts".

"That's cause you've been cooped up in here all day", Merricat mused, and bundled the girl into her arms, "Well up and at' em, c'mon outside and get some fresh air". Sophie voiced her displeasure in feeble groans, her whole body a sickly shade of pink. Merricat hauled her sister out into the air, making her stand on her feet. "Come on now, you can't laze about all day", she tutted, the little girl kept groaning and moaning her protests as she was frog-marched to the direction of the fire. "There now was that so hard?" Merricat quipped, kneeling to meet her sister's eyes – they where like slits, her eyelids heavy. "I wanna go back inside", she whined.

"No honey, I want you to stay up for a while, so get off the parliamentary side of your behind and get some sun in your face", Merricat smirked, she waved to Lori and Carol. She felt her stomach tense when she saw that they had been joined by Logan and Andre, she supposed that it was something that she would have to get used to. Sophie immediately stopped in her tracks upon seeing the two men. Merricat turned to her sister, "Sophie, c'mon now, I'm not playin' around now".

"I wanna go back inside _**now**_!" Sophie exclaimed, her face going red.

"Sophie DuBois", Merricat gasped angrily, "I do not like that tone of voice that you are takin' with me".

"Well I wanna go inside, I don't want to be outside. I don't wanna be here!" Sophie continued to cry, before sucking in a deep breath, and then screaming loudly. Merricat's mouth fell agape, utterly taken aback by her sister's behaviour.

"Sophie!" she yelled, "What in God's name do you think you are doing? You weren't raised in a barn! You cut that out this instant!"

But Sophie continued in her all-out tantrum, screaming at the top of her lungs and stomping her feet in a fury. She had attracted a crowd from the camp, and Merricat felt her ears heat up in embarrassment. She turned away from her sister, "Fine, you wanna act like a ragamuffin, go ahead, you can scream yourself silly!" She refused to give in to her, this was not how Sophie behaved, and this was not the kind of behaviour that she would tolerate. Merricat was rigid in her resolve, and when she heard her sister finally went silent, she felt a small victory, and turned with crossed arms to scold her sister, but her heart dropped as she saw her sister's pale white face. "Sophie?" No response, her sister wasn't even looking at her, her eyes were glazed over with a vacant look, and then, to Merricat's horror, her sister collapsed to the ground.

"Sophie, Sophie!" Merricat couldn't hide the overwhelming fear in her voice as she dropped to her sister's side. Her body had gone rigid, her limbs locking up as her muscles convulsed violently. Everyone flocked around them as Sophie continued to jerk rapidly, her eye's rolling back as she let out short, gasping breaths. Merricat cursed herself, she should've recognised the signs, she should've known, she should have given her the medication the second that they came back to camp. She hadn't had one this violent since Ashley died.

"Jesus what the hell is wrong with her?" Logan gasped.

"It looks like a seizure", someone spoke, Merricat didn't know who, a woman, Carol, she could only focus on Sophie.

"Rick, Rick!"

"Someone get the medibag!"

"Dale get a pillow!"

"What the hell happened?"

"Give them some air!"

Merricat wasn't listening, all she could focus on was her sister, she didn't even take notice of the tears staining her cheeks, or her ragged breathing, nothing else mattered but Sophie. "You're okay baby, your okay, your okay", she wept, patting down her hair and holding her face.

"Merr, Merr what do you need us to do, do we hold her down?" It was Rick beside her, Rick was speaking to her.

"No, no", she answered, "she, she has to be able to move, she has to move or else she could hurt herself, we, we just gotta wait it out".

"Here, stick a belt in her mouth!" Logan exclaimed, thrusting it into Merricat's hands, she snapped, throwing it away, "Are you insane? That could break her jaw!"

Seconds passed, minutes, eventually Sophie began to slow down, her legs flopped, her whole body going loose as she finally passed out. Rick placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "Let's move her inside the RV, huh?" he told her, Merricat nodded, "Okay, okay". She bundled the fragile little girl into her arms, lifting her up and holding her tightly into her chest.

Merricat came from outside the RV after leaving Sophie inside. She sucked in a breath, _everyone_ was waiting for her, waiting for her to explain, they were left in a state of bewilderment, one minute, Sophie was up and fine, and the next, the next she was deathly ill. She stared at everyone, Rick, Dale, Lori … Daryl. She slowly walked down the steps of the RV. "Merr, is she okay?" Rick asked with concern.

The woman nodded, "Yeah, when they get like that … she usually sleeps for a couple a' hours, it really wears her out".

"What happened to her?" Lori grimaced.

"She had a real bad seizure", she sighed.

"Is, is it epilepsy?" Lori continued.

Merricat shook her head, "No, she's had them since she was a baby. She hasn't had one in two months, and the doctors always said that there could have been a chance that they might go away as she got older, so I thought that maybe, maybe they'd finally gotten better".

"It's okay Merricat, we'll do everything that we can to help", Carol smiled, and placed a kind hand on Merricat's shoulder.

"Maybe we should gave stayed at the CDC after all", it was a quiet, rather snide comment, from Andrea. She'd muttered it beneath her breath, but Merricat's sharp hearing picked it up. "And what is _that_ supposed to mean?" Merricat growled.

Andrea glanced up anxiously, realising that she'd been heard, "Like Dr Jenner had said, it would have been better for her, not to suffer", she argued.

Merricat fumed, clenching her fists into tight balls, she stormed forward, ready to tear into the woman. She found her way blocked as Daryl stood in between the two women. "Don't", he warned, "Wouldn't want to be doin' something you'll regret now, do ya?" Merricat snarled and glared at Andrea over the man's shoulder. Why, of all people, did _he_ have to be one talking sense to _her_? Rick stepped forward, "He's right Merr, everyone come on", he announced, "We've been gawking around long enough, we've all got plenty to be getting on with". Rick cleared the crowd to Merricat's relief, she despised having all eyes on her. Only Daryl remained, he waited until everyone had dispersed before he spoke again. "You know Andrea's head ain't right, not since er' sister died".

"I've noticed", she replied dryly.

"So, you know she don't mean what she says", he continued.

"Doesn't mean that I gotta tolerate her saying things like that", Merricat growled.

"Means you do if you don't wanna start shit", Daryl remarked. Merricat felt her jaw clench, "Coming from you", she snapped, and sighed, "Sorry. I just, just hate it when people see her like that … it makes it more real".

He hummed flatly, "So those pills?"

"Yes".

"They weren't for you".

"No".

"You could've told me that they were for the kid", he chided her.

Merricat shrugged her shoulders, "I don't like people knowing okay, its better when they don't know".

"Don't lie to me again", he snapped firmly.

"I didn't lie!" she protested in irritation, and Daryl raised a brow, "You didn't tell the truth neither, which is the same thing".

Merricat felt guilt then, and annoyance at herself, you knew you were well in the wrong if _Daryl Dixon_ is being the reasonable one. "I'm sorry", she sighed, and pinched the bridge of her nose, "I won't lie to you again". Daryl nodded, and glanced towards the RV. "She gonna be a'right?"

Merricat rubbed her eyes, "I can only hope so, she's a fighter, she's pulled through worse". She began to walk back up the stairs again, "I'm going to go sit with her, I wanna be with her when she wakes up, would you tell Rick?"

"Yeah", he said, "go be with yer' kid".

"Thank you, Dixon".

* * *

Merricat sighed as she finally emerged from the RV, hours had passed, and night had finally fallen, and still, Sophie had yet to wake up. She felt drained and stretched her aching limbs as he made her way slowly towards the low camp fire. "I was about to call you", Lori smiled, "Supper's ready, will you rustle everybody up?"

"Sure, thing Lori", Merricat smiled. She went tent to tent, rousing the camp inhabitants, "C'mon y'all supper's on!"

"Damn, I'm half starved", she heard someone called from behind her, and of course, it was Logan, "Good evening".

"Good evening Logan", she replied courteously.

"How's the little tyke?" he smiled warmly.

"Still sleepin soundly", she answered.

"You alright Red?" Merricat glanced to see Daryl approach them, with T-Dog hot on his heels. "Yeah, am fine Daryl, am just gonna bring some food back to Sophie in case she wakes up".

"I'll help you!" Logan grinned, "I wanna see the little girl".

"Fine", Merricat sighed, "We'll be back in a couple minutes, save me a plate, would ya?"

He nodded reluctantly, and watched as they walked towards the RV.

Logan and Merricat left the plate of food next to the sleeping Sophie, she tucked her in once more, and gave her a gentle peck on the forehead. They were standing outside the back of the RV as Merricat lit up a cigarette, inhaling deeply, hoping it would help calm her nerves. "So how long have you guys been traveling together?" he asked the girl.

"Not long, a week, I joined them pretty late", she answered between long drags.

"You seem very close to them all", he laughed, "for knowing them a week".

"People need each other nowadays more than ever I suppose", she thought.

"Hmm", Logan hummed, "That backwoods redneck, Daryl isn't it? He seems to be _awfully_ protective of you".

God if he only knew the half of it, "Daryl's a good friend", she found herself coming immediately to Dixon's defence, even though it was how she often described Daryl herself, she didn't very much like the way Logan was saying it. "He cares very much about everyone in this camp".

"Maybe he does, but I don't see him hover around anyone else like he does around _you_. Doesn't that creep you out?" he kept pushing, only exceeding in adding to the fire burning in her belly. It was an incorrect observation on Logan's part, but again, she was not happy about the insinuation he was making about Daryl's character. Yes, he was a hot-headed, crossbow slinging, foul-mouthed and all-around pain in her ass, but he was nothing like the monsters that she had known in her life. He didn't look at her as though she was nothing more than flesh and bone to tear apart and do with as he pleased, she knew that, he saw her as a _person_.

Merricat leered at him, "Daryl's got ma back", she affirmed strongly.

Logan smiled, moving his hand slowly so that it was now resting on Merricat's thigh, she froze, her heart leaping up to her mouth, "I could have your back … and other things, if you want". She backed away, "I'm gonna have ta draw a line there", she tried to sound assertive, confident, but it came out as a stuttered sentence. Logan didn't seem particularly dissuaded by her discomfort. "Why?" he pressed on and reached out to intertwine his fingers into hers. Merricat gasped, that same hot clamminess, soft but a death grip. _Why did all their hands feel the same why? Why did they grab at her the same way?_ He closed the gap between them by pulling her roughly against his chest, "Don't tell me you haven't thought about it", he purred sickly into her ear, and Merricat felt her whole body be overcome with panic and fear. His free hand squeezed her thigh, like she was nothing more than packaged raw meat. Horrible images flashed before her eyes, memories mixing with reality. For a brief second, it wasn't Logan's eyes looking down at her with that predatory gaze, it was _**his**_.

Her brain went into motion, _just get it over with, keep quiet, don't move, don't fight_ , it'll be over more quickly if she didn't fuss. She knew that. But, new thoughts cemented themselves into her mind. They weren't there anymore. They didn't control her anymore. As far as she knew, they were more than likely all dead. So why, why would she give into, into this boy? He had no claim to her body, she'd taken it back for herself … and she wasn't prepared to give up control again. Never again. "No", Merricat whispered at first, she wasn't that girl, she wasn't weak anymore. She found a strength she wasn't aware existed, and yanked her hand free, "I said no!" she bellowed clearly, and shoved him hard. Logan's friendly smile turned into an angry scowl. "Don't be like that, _Merricat_ ", he told her hatefully, and made another grab for her, this time roughly pulling her by the shoulders, slamming her back hard into the RV. He Pinned her down by the wrists, fingernails digging into her skin, hands roaming down over her abdomen, reaching lower. "Don't act like such a tease. No? Come on, just relax and stop fighting! You know you that you want it", and he reached his hand to pry her thighs apart.

 _No I fucking don't, I never did_. "I said get the fuck off of me!" Merricat roared, "Get off of me!" Before she could beat him off Logan was thrown from her, Merricat cried out, Rick quickly came to her side, Daryl had Logan on the ground, and Shane was swift to follow. "Merr, are you, are you alright? Did he hurt you?" Rick's hands weren't clammy as he cupped her face worryingly in his hands. "I'm, I'm okay", she breathed, "I'm okay". She seemed daze, her whole body trembling fiercely as the reality of what almost happened sank in.

"Hey, hey, easy, easy Dixon!" she heard Shane call as he managed to drag Daryl away from the badly beaten and bloodied Logan, who now lay half-conscious in a heap on the ground.

The commotion had alerted the others, and it was Lori who appeared first on the scene, "What happen?" she gasped, and turned immediately to her husband, who was stuck rigidly next to the young woman. "Lori", he motioned her forward, "Take Merricat into the RV, alright, stay with her in there", she glanced anxiously down at the boy on the ground, and then again to Merricat, who stood frozen, white as a sheet and shaking fiercely. It took her mere seconds to piece together what had transpired. She took the girl gently by the shoulder, "Come on darlin, come on", she ushered her away, and Merricat blindly followed as if hypnotised.

Rick turned his attentions to the men, Shane had finally manged to pry Daryl away, his knuckles bloodied and his face red in anger, "Now what are we gonna do with this piece of shit?" Shane demanded harshly, pointing angrily to the heap of the person on the ground.

"Fuckin leave em for the walkers", Daryl spat, wiping his mouth gruffly, "Or lynch em, whatever's more painful".

"That isn't our way", Rick commanded, "We don't kill the living".

"Rick look around", Shane challenged immediately, "We don't have the luxury of high morality anymore. That man just tried to force himself onto one of our women. What if it had of been Carol, or Andrea, what if it had of been _Lori_. What do you want us to do, huh? Let it slide? Just let em' walk away? Think about this Rick".

"You don't think I haven't been thinking about that?" He retaliated, "But what are we supposed to do? Kill them? Put a bullet in the back of his head?"

"Yeah", Daryl snapped, "Or march em out to the middle of the woods – let em fend for themselves, far as I see it, that shit stain", he glared at Logan, "Don't deserve any better".

Rick thought for a moment, he couldn't, couldn't bring himself to kill someone in cold blood, and couldn't have it done on his watch either. He glanced to the RV, he could see the outline of the two women inside, Merricat's face flashed before his eyes, the fear, the vulnerability, the sheer terror that you could see in those strange eyes of hers. His anger was reignited at that, she was one of his own, and that man, had tried to hurt her – force himself on her.

"Tomorrow", he began with grim expression, "We blindfold them. We throw them in a car and we leave them in the backend of nowhere".

"Ta hell with tomorrow, let's do it now", Daryl stormed before spitting on the ground.

"A agree, a don't want them in this camp a second longer than necessary", Shane nodded.

Rick chewed on his lip, "Not now, we can't bring them out in the dark, that's a death sentence, and you both know it".

"And?" the redneck sneered, completely at ease with the fact.

"Tomorrow", Rick repeated firmly, "First light. We deal with them".

"This don't sit right with me", Shane sniffed disapprovingly, "Not one bit", before walking off back to his tent. Rick turned to Daryl, who looked equally displeased. "Stay with her in their tonight, a'right? I'll take your watch, I don't want her on her own, not until Logan and Andre are gone".

Daryl didn't complain, or protest, he simply nodded his agreement. None of the women would be left alone that night. Daryl picked up his discarded crossbow, and began slowly walking around to the front of the RV.

Lori wrapped a warm blanket tightly around Merricat's shoulders, but nothing seemed to be able to stop her trembling. She sat down next to the younger woman, rubbing her back and speaking words of comfort. Merricat's gaze remained blank, void of emotion, her mind consumed with shock. She was immediately alerted when the door opened, and Lori pounced to her feet, but was relieved to find the familiar face of Daryl Dixon. "It sorted?" Lori questioned him in a clipped sentence.

"Yeah, Rick wants me ta keep watch in here t'night", he answered briskly, and lowered his crossbow into a corner. Lori nodded her approval and diverted her attention back to the girl "You're staying in here tonight, with Sophie, okay. Daryl's here too. That, that man, is not going to come near you – not even look at you again. You stay in here now and get warmed up", Lori rambled slightly, patting down Merricat's hair as she did so. One final hug, and she retreated to her own tent, finding Shane posted solemnly outside it. He said nothing to her, barely exchanging a glance, as she zipped open the cover, and crept inside.

Daryl had remained standing a good distance away from the girl, who had yet to speak a word. He was at a loss at what to do. He was a _man_ , men don't deal with this kinda crap. Real men beat the shit outta the lowlifes that rape women yeah, but the aftermath is not something that they should be concerned with. He was there to keep guard – to make sure that shithead didn't try anything. Beyond that, he hadn't the slightest clue. Merricat in turn seemed to slowly reanimate as the mist left her eyes. She gazed up at the man.

"Your hands are bleeding", she observed, her tone was flat, hoarse, robotic, she was functioning on autopilot.

Daryl looked down quickly at his bruised and bloodied knuckles, the small price he had paid to tear that yankee prick an entire world of pain. "S'alright", he shrugged, but Merricat rose from her feet, letting the blanket fall from her shoulders as she retrieved the medibag. "Sit down", she instructed. He obeyed, and cautiously took the seat opposite hers. She followed suit, and carefully unpacked a few bandages and rubbing alcohol.

There was some mutual understanding reached as Merricat cleaned and bandaged Daryl's hands. Neither of them spoke a word, they didn't need to. It was better that way. They didn't acknowledge the events that had just transpired outside the walls of the RV. Merricat couldn't bring herself to. But cleaning up his wounds, tending to them, that was productive. That was something that she could do in that moment. There was nothing she could do about what had just happened, nothing could take it back. She, she was just thankful that her friends had come to her aid, before it had been too late. She was gentle, dabbing away the blood and wrapping his hands up in gauze. Merricat had always been good at those sorts of things, she learned early on. She finished up promptly, and packed everything away, "Seams am' always fixin' you up", she commented.

"Yeah".

"You gonna make a habit of getting' yourself hurt?"

"Not mah intention to".

"Least we replenished all this crap today". Their conversation was short and brief as Merricat sat back down. She rubbed her shoulders as she felt her skin tingle, God, she could still feel his hands on her.

"You cold?"

"A little".

Daryl picked up the discarded blanket, handing it cautiously to the girl. She took it gratefully, "Thank you".

"S'alright".

"No, a' mean it Daryl. Thank you, thank you for being here … I know its only cause Rick asked ya' to … but, I really appreciate it, and, and for, for …"

"Is' okay red", he reaffirmed.

Merricat nodded, feeling her lower lip tremble. She buried her face in her hands, waves of emotion hitting her at once like a tsunami. God, she hated to feel so weak, so vulnerable … so stupid. She desperately tried to keep the tears at bay, but they refused to be kept away. Her shoulders shook fiercely as she tried to stifle her own sobs. "God, how could I have been so stupid?" she hissed at herself.

Daryl stared at the girl uncomfortably, he scratched his beard awkwardly, was, was he say something? What was he supposed to say? Jesus, the woman was driving him berserk. "C'mon now, you … you don't wanna wake Sophie", he gestured to the sleeping girl. Merricat sniffled. Sophie, thank God that she wasn't awake to see any of that. "She knew they were trouble", she murmured to herself, "she kept sayin it, and a' didn't listen".

"Smart as a' whip that girl o' yours. Real weird, but smart", Daryl commented.

There was a faint hint of a smile on Merricat's lips, "She is, isn't she? Top of her class before all this happened, she was just about to start first grade … she was so excited, I was so proud".

"You talk like you're her mom", Daryl nodded, and the woman sighed in response, "Our mother, got sick, yeah know? After Sophie was born … couldn't bond with her, be around her much. I mean, there was such a big age gap between us, mama was forty-six. A' guess a' kinda just filled in where I could, tried to be there for her as much as any sister".

"So, you been doin' this since before, lookin' after the kid, when things were still good?"

"A' wouldn't say good", she sniffed, "Just less shitty", she glanced over at her sister, "I really hope that am' not screwing her up".

Daryl gave the girl a strange look, "The world's full 'a walkin' corpses and pieces of shit like that Yankee out there … and you're worried that _you're_ the one screwin' her up?"

Merricat found herself laughing, and she raked a weary hand through her hair, "Well, when you put it that way". Noises came from outside, and almost instantly she froze, and Daryl jumped to his feet with his crossbow raised. He glanced outside the window, his eyes scanning into the dark. "Is' okay", he assured her, "It's just Rick".

Merricat nodded, and watched as Daryl quietly retook his seat, the fear that he had almost managed to rid from her had come back tenfold, and you could see it in her eyes. "Please don't leave tonight", she begged, Merricat felt foul, sounding so weak, but fear trumped her pride. She just wanted to feel safe. Daryl gave her a once over, his brows knitting together, "I won't", he promised.

* * *

Merricat didn't dream that night, and she was grateful for it. Her eyes felt heavy as they fluttered open, her brain pounded against her skull. She felt something warm pressed up against her stomach and found confusingly that she was lying next to Sophie, who had yet to awaken after yesterday's fit. It wasn't where she had fallen asleep, but there Merricat lay. She carefully untangled herself from the girl, tip toing to her feet. She found Daryl asleep on the floor, his crossbow laying beside him … he hadn't gone back to his tent, he had kept his word. He'd stayed. Merricat quickly realised that he must have moved her to beside her sister. She glanced to the clock on the wall, 5:07am. It was early, but the sun had risen. She smelled good things cooking, figuring that Lori must have already set about preparing breakfast, she took the blanket from her own shoulders and draped it gently around her own shoulders, and quietly made her way to the door.

But her stomach froze as she approached the fire, it wasn't Lori, or Carol, or anyone else by the fire … but Andre, and _him_. It looked ad though they had cooked up half of the camp's provisions for their breakfast. Her heart stopped, she froze on the spot. Andre spotted her first, and gave her a pitiful look, before glancing back down at his piled plate. And then he did. Logan turned to her. His right cheek was swollen out and black, hiding his eye. His lip horribly split, and his nose decorated in dry blood. "Well, good morning _Merricat_ ", it was a horrible smile, it was predatory. She stumbled backwards as he rose to his feet. "Where are you going?" he asked, his voice light, but, she could hear it, that sinister condescension. He began walking towards her, and Merricat knew – she _had_ to get away. "Daryl", she found herself calling, and then louder, "Daryl!"

Logan sneered, "What, what's wrong _Merricat_? We can't have a little conversation without you crying for your fucking boyfriend?" He tried to grab at her, she reached for her sword, and it wasn't there. _Oh God_. She dodged his hand, catching him by the elbow, she punched him hard against his already bruised check, and kicked him with all her might in the stomach. He grunted as he fell, Merricat had remembered her strength. Noises, grunts, shouts and the trudging of boots. The RV door was kicked upon, and Daryl bounded out with his Crossbow raised. Rick and Glenn ran into view, the rest of the camp emerging at the commotion.

"Merricat!" Rick called, and she turned to face him, "I'm okay Rick", she answered, but she was grabbed back roughly. The woman gasped as she felt her back collide with Logan's chest … and the cold metal of the gun barrel pointed at her left temple. Logan had jumped up to his feet, and had pulled a gun, one of _their_ guns, from his jeans pockets. The men raised their guns, and the women gasped in horror. Logan held Merricat tightly against him, and the gun even tighter against her head. Logan smiled at the men who glared him down, "Well now", he laughed, "aren't we all in a rather awkward situation, huh?"

Rick's lips drew into a thin line, "It's not too late to make the right choice here Logan", he told him, "Let her go, and you and Andre can just walk away".

He snorted in response, "Jesus Christ, you think just because you still wear that uniform and shiny badge that it means something?" he laughed at Rick, mocking him, "It's the fucking end of the world man", and then, he pressed his nose into Merricat's hair, "It's a brave new world, you think she'd be the first backward bumpkin skank that I've killed?"

"You don't have to do this", The Sheriff spoke again, but this time you could hear the fear tinged in his voice. Carol was sobbing, and Lori kept Carl hidden behind her. No one could move, for fear it would cost the girl her life.

"No", Logan smiled, and clicked off the safety, "I want to". He laughed again, and motioned for Andre, "Finish loading up the car", he ordered. Andre did as he was commanded, Shane stood in front to block his way, "Ah, Ah, Ah", Logan tutted sadistically, "Any hassle, and little miss hussy over here gets a bullet to the skull". Shane's nostrils flared, but he moved aside. Logan smiled as he felt Merricat go rigid against him, "Relax now", he hushed her, "I won't kill you … if you behave". He looked up again, this time to Daryl, mulling over the perfect words in his mouth. "If you want, I'll leave you a piece", he grinned, Daryl was seething, it practically radiated from him. But he was powerless to do anything, he was using Merricat as both a hostage, and a human shield. Logan laughed again, "We would have really been dead without you, yeah know … our first camp, we didn't part on civil terms … jeez, you fuck one guy's wife, and everyone loses their minds! Hunting us down like animals, over, over some slut crying rape? That's crazy right? But you guys, you guys picked us up right in the nick of time", Logan was gloating over them, "That's the problem with you people … you all think that the same rules apply. Not anymore, it's a better world now, we can do whatever we goddamn please and – Christ I'm monologuing!" he laughed at himself, whilst every single member of the camp stared at him in a forced silence. "Andre!" he shouted, "You jerkin' off over there? Hurry the hell up!" Logan cleared his throat, "Well, this is how it is going to work. We're taking your shit, and we're taking your car. Any of you try anything stupid, and she's done for, alright?"

Merricat clenched her jaw, she hadn't broken eye contact with Rick, what could he do? What could anyone do? She was trapped.

"Car's loaded!" Andre called, and jumped into the driver's seat of Merricat's Cadillac. Logan grinned, "Wish I could say that it's been pleasure, but, time's wasting, and me and _Merricat_ here are going to have some _fun_ ". Merricat felt her breaking point as she snarled and threw her head back to bash him in the face. Logan grunted and grabbed a fistful of her hair and hoisted her head up sharply, keeping the gun pointed under her chin, "And for that", he snarled, "I'm going to make it _hurt_ ".

He hauled her backwards, keeping the gun pointed at the girl. She struggled against him as he threw her into the back of the car, he followed inside, and they sped off violently from sight.

No one wasted a breath in jumping into action. "Shane, Daryl, with me!" Rick barked. There was no deed for the command, Daryl was already making a bee line for his bike, and Shane for his truck. "They're going straight back onto the highway, if we take route 96 we can cut em off", Shane shouted.

"Rick, Rick!" Lori cried, and he turned to face his wife, "Bring her back okay?" she whimpered, "Whatever you have to do, bring her back". He nodded and kissed her on her forehead.

…

"I just gotta know, were you and 'bob-tod' banging?" Logan insisted on taunting Merricat, he kept the gun raised, aimed at her heart as he laughed to himself, "I mean, I wouldn't blame you, slim pickings nowadays, am I right? I mean, do you think you could even be compared to the chicks I've had in the past? I'll give it to you, you have nice tits, and a hot body, but those creepy eyes of yours are a deal breaker", he sighed, "I think I'll have to do you from behind to be able to finish". She decided that he very much liked the sound of his own voice – seeing as he wouldn't shut the hell up. Merricat on the other hand remained in a deathly silence as he prattled on.

"Jeez, did you see the look on that redneck's face?" he nudged Andre, "I mean, hell, don't they bang their own sisters, you southerners? You must have been like sleeping with a supermodel". Merricat glared at him, focusing all her hate for the man into her eyes. She wished what Sophie said was true, that her green eye was a witching eye, because then she could kill Logan with it. "What's the matter, cat got your tongue, _Merricat_?" he laughed dryly, turning to Andre, "Wait, wasn't there, like a song or something, from a book, Jesus what was it Andre?"

Andre glared at his friend from the rear-view mirror, "I dunno Logan, look can't we leave it?"

"Lighten up", he sneered in response, "It was from a weird book we studied, oh god, what was it?" Merricat felt her jaw clench, she knew damn well the idiotic song that he couldn't remember.

Logan's eyes lit up as the corners of his mouth turned up in a devilish grin, _**"Merricat, said Connie, would you like a cup of tea?**_

 _ **Oh no, said Merricat, you'll poison me.**_

 _ **Merricat, said Connie, would you like to go to sleep?**_

 _ **Down in the boneyard ten feet deep!"**_

He sang it slowly as his free hand snaked up the length of her leg, _**"Merricat, said Connie, would you like a cup of tea?"**_ His hand moved over her knee slowly, tortuously. Merricat felt herself shrink as far back into the seat as possible, her eyes fixed at the gun that was still pointing at her. _**"Oh no, said Merricat, you'll poison me"**_. Her thigh now, his thick cold fingers rubbing against her exposed skin, her stomach turned, and her throat constricted, she kept staring at the gun, his grip on the gun loosened as he tightened his hold on her flesh. As far as she could see, she could do as she had always done, suffer in silence, and hope for mercy. Or, she could act, she could _fight_. Fight to reclaim the freedom she had carved out for herself, it couldn't be just words, she'd said that she wasn't that girl anymore, now it was time to _prove it_. She had to choose, she had to do something. His hand encroached closer, and Merricat found herself, slowly buckling her seatbelt, _**"Merricat, said Connie, would you like to go to sleep? Down in the boneyard ten feet -**_

Merricat lurched forward, grabbing the gun with all her might, Logan's eyes went wide in shock as he acted immediately, the two locked desperately for control, "Fucking bitch!" he grunted, but she wouldn't give, Merricat growled as she kicked him hard in the groin, and finally, the gun slipped from his sweaty grasp. A shot rang, Their eyes buzzed. Andre yelled as the stirring wheel jerked violently. They spun, faster and faster on the tarmac. A jerk, a thud, a scream from Merricat, and then silence, as the car finally stopped, after flipping twice down the road.

She felt the tension in her nose and head. Her eyes opened groggily, her vision still blurred. Her ears rang hot, as objects finally began to hone back into focus. She was staring at the seat in front of her, only, it was upside down. Merricat tried to move herself, but her whole body was a tone weight. "Oh God", she breathed, her chest feeling as though it had collapsed upon itself. Her seatbelt had been jammed down, trapping her into her seat. Pain seethed through every atom of her body, most of it emanating from her thigh, she looked down shakily to see that Logan's hand had been replaced by a large shard of glass sticking out from her tender flesh. "Oh Christ, Oh Christ", she cried desperately. She looked over and gasped in horror, Logan was dead next to her, his neck twisted at a horrible angle, blood pouring from his forehead. Merricat was overtaken by the ghastly sight … the very thing that she had caused. The blood was rushing to her head, and the pain her chest was immense. But she could still hear the screeching of tires, the shouts from men.

"Merricat, Merricat!" she knew that voice, Rick, Rick!

"Daryl, help me here, oh God the car flipped!"

"Rick careful, they might have turned!" Shane called.

"R-rick, D-Daryl, Daryl", she croaked, "I'm, I'm in here".

"Oh Christ", Rick dropped to his knees, she could see him, see him. They were here! "Merr, Oh Jesus Merr", he gasped, "Are you okay?"

"I, I don't know", she rasped.

"Daryl, Daryl over here!" he called, "It's okay Merricat, were gonna get you out of this okay?"

Daryl was swiftly next to him, "Shit", he snarled, "Can ya move?"

"No", she riled around, "The seatbelt's jammed".

"We're gonna getcha out, a'right? Jus' hold on", he told her, and the two men prised open the door. Daryl retrieved his hunting knife, slicing the seatbelt. He caught her in his arms, and both he and Rick hauled her out from the wreckage.

"Shit", Rick hissed upon seeing her bleeding head and leg, "What happened?"

"Logan, I, I tried, the gun, I – Oh God my leg!" she seethed as she tried to move it.

"Fuck, we need ta' get her back now", Daryl insisted. It was completely out of the blue, but Merricat started to laugh, and he stared at her blankly. "I, I wore my seatbelt this time", she smiled, laughing again.

"She's delusional", Rick commented worryingly.

"I'm fine Grimes", she laughed weakly, "absolutely…", she could barely finish her sentence before passing out in Daryl's arms, with he and Rick staring down at the girl.

 _ **Thoughts?**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**I apologise for the wait, I've been busy revising for exams and all that, and to be honest I found this chapter a bit tricky to write. I'm so happy for all the feedback, and I'm really trying to incorporate it into my work. I'm really over the moon that you guys are liking this story so far, so without further ado: Enjoy!**_

 _ **This chapter is dedicated to Bruna Pereira for her kickass reviews! Thank you so much!**_

* * *

 _ **Five**_

 _O my God, I am heartfully sorry for having offended thee, and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishment, but most of all because I have offended Thee my God, who is all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more, and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen._

Merricat prayed more than she did before. She woke up first thing in the morning to do so, before the sun came up. She would find a quite place, somewhere shaded, and kneel. She realised bitterly that she had lost her mother's cross a month ago, when she had first joined the group. But it was alright, Carol had gifted her a pair of worn rosary beads upon discovering that the young woman was also deeply religious. She made a quick sign of the cross, and rose shakily to her feet, Merricat sighed and picked up her cane, well, thick stick widdled for her by Dale. It made it easier to walk. She wouldn't need it much longer; her leg had been healing reasonably well. She couldn't say the same for her bruised ribs however, though manageable, the constant pain from them was at times utterly debilitating. She walked back towards their newest makeshift campsite, she and Sophie now found themselves permanent residents in the RV, with Blanche completely wrecked past the point of repair, they were now truly homeless.

Rick was already up, but clearly it hadn't been long, as he only adorned his white undershirt and trousers. "Morning", she smiled wearily as she approached him.

"Morning", he nodded, "Sleep alright?"

"As best as anyone can in the apocalypse", she teased.

"How's your leg?"

"Healing fine, I'm okay Rick, honestly", she told him, "We movin out today?"

"Tomorrow", he answered, "A think people need more time before we upheave again".

"You mean you think that _I_ need more time", she quipped sharply.

Rick scratched at the nape of his neck, "Merr, what you went through…"

"I'm _fine_ ", she huffed, crossing her arms firmly across her chest.

"Tomorrow", he promised, "We will move out tomorrow".

Merricat smiled, and the two made their way over to the dying campfire from the night before. "Let Lori lie in, I'll fix breakfast this morning".

Rick stopped, "Merr, I don't want you overexerting yourself now".

"Rick!" she scowled, and he raised his hands, "Alright, alright", he laughed.

Merricat sighed, and went over to the trunk of the Tuscan, retrieving a couple of packets of porridge mix as well as the cooking pot. She hauled it to the fire pit, making fast work. Soon the pot was bubbling away, and Merricat sat contently by the fire, her sword nestled next to her hip – she never took it off anymore. _Ever_. She even slept with her sword still hanging on her waist. She was humming to herself, Sophie had begged her to tell her another story last night, and she'd gone with Disney's version of Sleeping Beauty, and now rather annoyingly, Once Upon A Dream was repeating on loop in her brain.

" _ **I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream**_

 _ **I know you, that look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam**_

 _ **And I know it's true that visions are seldom all they seem**_

 _ **But if I know you, I know what you'll do**_

 _ **You'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream",**_ she sang quietly to herself as she stirred the pot.

"You sound lovely", Merricat turned to see Carol standing over her, "Sorry", she blushed, "I didn't mean to make you stop".

"It's okay", Merricat laughed, her cheeks tinging red, "I just didn't expect anyone else up yet". Carol sat next to her and began sorting the bowls, "You know what they say, early bird gets the worm". The young woman chuckled.

"I always hated that expression", Merricat mused, "Mah daddy said it a lot, his explanation for making us get up at 5am every damn day".

"No wonder you're such an early riser then", Carol smiled, "How's the leg?"

"Healing fine", she repeated the sentence with a forced smile. She watched as the others began to slowly emerge from their tents. The morning sun breathed life into the camp, she counted the familiar faces, Dale, Andrea, Shane, Glenn, T … everyone clambered out yawning and rubbing their eyes, the only face she didn't see was Daryl's.

"You seen Daryl today?" she asked Carol, who looked up from her hands, "Hmm?"

"Daryl – I can't see him", Merricat continued.

"Oh, I think he went on a quick hunting trip", she chirped happily. Merricat hummed in a slight annoyance, he shouldn't be constantly going out on his own – it's just asking for trouble. "Oh, don't be worrying about Daryl, he'll be fine, he always is", Carol resounded.

Merricat jumped slightly, and scoffed, "A' am not worried about _Daryl_ ".

Carol smiled, a little too coyly for Merricat's liking, "Hmm, whatever you say dear".

The young woman huffed, yes, she was now a lot more trusting of the man, he was still as loud-mouthed and as hot-headed as ever, but she found all those traits a lot more tolerable now that she had also seen that he could also be as equally understanding, loyal and self-sacrificing. He'd been there for her through that whole ordeal with Logan, and he had refrained from being distant with Sophie as she still recovered from her last fit. And besides, who was she to judge someone for being hot-headed? Her own fiery temper could be as equally damaging as his.

"Somethin' smells good", T-Dog announced as he plopped down next to the girl.

"Don't get too excited", Merricat smirked, "It's just porridge".

"Better than nothin' in the belly", T laughed, "Want me to take over, you look a little tired".

Merricat averted her gaze and sighed, "I. Am. Fine. God, I don't know how many times that I have to say it!"

"You can say it till you're blue in the face", he quipped, "Don't make it true".

Merricat groaned, and rolled her eyes before rising to her feet, making a statement of _not_ using her cane. She felt her leg wobble a little, but she ignored it as she walked off, damn determined to get on with her life as normal. She went to retrieve her rifle from the RV, it had been a while since she had patrolled, and she felt well and ready to get back to the grind.

"What are you doing?" Merricat groaned as she heard Dale question her, she turned to him, "My turn to patrol", she answered him briefly.

"You think that's a good idea?" he questioned, he always used that tone with her, like he was her father.

Merricat smiled politely, "Yes, Rick, Shane and T patrolled from last night till this morning, no ones' ever had a problem with me patrolling before".

"That was before you got banged up pretty badly in that car wreck", he told her firmly, "And before you were attacked by –

"I am fine Dale", she snapped, silencing him, and turned on her heels away from the older man. She couldn't jog into the woodland area, so she walked steadily, rifle slung over her shoulder. She finally felt like she could breathe once hidden by the trees. She loved them all dearly, but since, all that horrible business … she felt smothered. Because everyone thought she was going to crack and were all holding their breaths until she did. But she wasn't going to crack. She'd dealt with far much worse and come out the other side just fine. She wasn't going to have a nervous breakdown just because some damn fool Yankee boy tried to jump her bones.

She walked further into the woods, it was like a release, like coming home. It was something she'd grown to adore about Georgia, it's forests were beautiful and plentiful. She breathed deeply, taking in the fresh air, _I am safe, I am okay, it is natural for me to feel a bit claustrophobic, even though I love these people, I'm not used to such attention, it is okay, I am okay_. She heard crunching, snapping, branches and leaves – dried by the sun. Always more comfortable with a sword than a gun, she quickly unsheathed it, and spun to meet the expected walker.

But it wasn't a walker, it wasn't an attacker. It was goddamn Dixon. "You ass, you scared the shit outta me", she snapped.

Daryl did not seem amused, he glared at her with a long scowl embedded on his face. "What the hell are ya doin' out here?" he growled.

Merricat shrugged her shoulders as she put away her sword, "I'm patrolling the camp, what's it look like am doin?".

"Am takin you back _**right now**_ ", he snapped, and grabbed her by the arm.

"Like hell you are!" she hissed and yanked it free, her face heating up as she saw red, "Why is it that everyone keeps treating me like a damn child!" she exploded, and Daryl found himself taking a step back. She'd cracked.

"You, Rick, Carol, Dale … everybody! I'm sick of it! I'm a grown woman, I can take care of myself", she was fuming.

"That may well be", Daryl goaded, "But right now –

"But nothin!" she interrupted him harshly, "I have never, depended on anyone mah whole damn life. I have never, _ever_ fallen apart, and what, now I will over somethin so stupid? Yes, that wired fool tried to rape me – twice. _Yes_ , I was thrown into my car with a loaded gun pointed at my head. _Yes_ , I thought I was going to die and _Yes,_ I knew that it would only be after he forced himself on me that he would get bored and blow my brains out!" she ranted like a woman possessed, kicking a tree trunk harshly with her good leg. She turned back to Daryl, chest heaving, "And _yes_ , am I having to live with the fact that _a killed two men? Two living human beings?_ Yes. And everyone knows what happened, and I can't change that, I, I can't take back what I did", her voice began to break up, and her anger was replaced with an overwhelming feeling of guilt, she turned away from him, he'd seen her cry too damn often. She felt her bad leg begin to give, _good Lord, could she ever catch a goddamn break?_ "Oh, just, fuck everything!" she seethed, and flopped to the ground. She pulled her legs beneath her chin, she now wished she had that damn cane. Daryl stayed staring at her, with a crossbow on his shoulder and a sling of squirrels hung across his chest. Jesus, what was he supposed to do? The damn woman wasn't making any sense. He opened his mouth, but the words didn't come, he scratched his head, and spat on the ground. "C'mon red", he told her, but the woman did not budge from where she sat. "Merricat", he warned, but the woman still refused to move. He scowled and rolled his eyes. "I am not waitin around here, so you can sit an' mope on your ass all damn day", he finally cursed and bounded forward, before she even had the chance to blink, Daryl tossed the woman over his shoulder.

"Daryl Dixon what in tarnation do you think you are doing!" she screamed, punching his back frantically, "Put me down this instance, oh you wretched man I said put me down!" She cursed and swore at the man the entire journey back to camp, but his resolve didn't so much as chip. He carried her the whole way back to the campsite screaming and shouting.

"You no good, dirty rotten, crossbow slinging, son of a bitch!" she bellowed as he threw her down clumsily on the logs. Everyone stared at them, from the moment Dixon had emerged from the trees with the wailing woman beating at him on his shoulder they all knew that there was going to be trouble.

Daryl scoffed, not speaking a word as he turned away from the woman who was cursing him blindly. "Merricat!" Carol gasped, "What on earth happened?"

"What happened was that no good hillbilly manhandled me!" she snarled vehemently as he stormed away.

"Oh my", Carol gasped, "maybe you should calm down a bit, you seem rather flustered".

Merricat glared at the woman, rather flustered? She was so furious that she could kill dead things! But she chose not to answer, Carol was too damn sweet for this earth. Merricat simply forced a thin smile and raked her hands through her hair. "You're right Carol, I should go and calm down", she forced through her teeth, "I'm gonna go to mah tent for a bit, and, cool off".

"Adda girl", she smiled, completely oblivious to her bubbling anger as she ushered her away, making sure that she walked away _with_ her cane supporting her.

Daryl left his squirrels outside his tent, he would gut and skin them later, after hauling that damn broad the whole way back to camp, he was in no mood to do anything tasking, he just wanted five minutes of peace to himself. He lay his head back against his pillow, he needed even a second to relax, to think of nothing, but his mind would never allow him such mercies. He thought about _that woman_. He could see her silhouette when he closed his eyes. His mind wandered back to that night at the CDC, when they had all drank themselves dumb … her laughing a little too loudly, how when she stretched her slender arms it made her dress hitch up a little, the warmth of her legs resting on his … _**Jesus, you some kinda homo now?**_ Daryl winced at his brother's voice ringing through his ears, _**gettin all hot an' bothered, over a woman? You drop yer balls or somethin?**_ His mouth twisted in anger, he wasn't pining over some woman. He was just … _thinkin_. Daryl sighed, but his mind was still stuck, on, on her. He remembered when they'd spent the night together in the RV,

" _What will Rick and y'all do to them?" she asked, her head laying on the table, she was clearly exhausted, but didn't want to fall asleep._

" _We're shippin them out first thing t'morrow, leavin em back were we found em", Daryl explained, leaning back in his chair._

 _She nodded, "Sophie wasn't the only one who was right, you were too", she murmured._

" _Huh?"_

" _You kept sayin that you didn't trust them, and you were right, how did you know?" she asked._

" _Jus' did", he shrugged._

" _Must be a gift", Merricat sighed, however Daryl wagged his head, "Naw, just been' around enough shitheads to know one when I see em"._

" _Hell", the woman laughed dryly, "If that's how it works then I should be a pro". She stopped for a moment, and raised her head a little, "What did you do before all this?" she asked abruptly._

 _He raised an eyebrow, "Why d'you wanna know?"_

" _I don't know, I just do"._

" _Well what did you do?" he rebuffed._

" _I asked you first", she eyed him, and he shrugged his shoulders a second time, "Not much different than what am doin' now, followin' Merle wherever he dragged us, an workin' whatever odd jobs came up around the neighbourhood"._

" _Who's Merle?" she asked, the woman's curiosity peaked._

" _My brother"._

" _A never asked you about your brother", she hesitated, recalling vaguely Daryl's fury before over his sibling, "what happened to him, if, if you don't mind me askin"._

" _We was travellin with 'is group here, and Merle bein' his dumbass self near got Rick an' the others killed, so they left him handcuffed to a roof in Atlanta", he spoke rather nonchalantly._

 _Merricat didn't know how to respond, how did you respond to that? He seemed rather unphased, as he went and poured himself a glass of water._

" _Handcuffed to a roof", she repeated in shock, "Heaven help him, did … he pass on?"_

" _No clue", he told her doubtfully, "We went back for him the day a' dragged you back ta camp, by the time we got there he a'ready had cut off his hand and made a run for it"._

" _Heaven's to Betsy!" she gasped, "Cut, cut off, cut off his own hand?"_

 _Daryl simply nodded as he handed her a glass, "He used a tourniquet though, wasn't much blood, an he was long gone by the time we got there"._

" _You think he's still alive?"_

" _Wouldn't surprise me, probably found himself somewhere new ta raise hell in"._

 _A ghost of a smile echoed on the woman's lips, "They breed you Dixon men from a different stock, don't they?" He rolled his eyes at the girl, "Ashley could'a never done anything like that, he fainted at the mere sight of blood"._

" _Sounds like a pussy", the man commented._

" _Yes", Merricat mused quietly, "He was a pussy … Mah father's greatest joy and greatest sorrow. He use ta say that, when we were both born, that I must have been the boy, and Ashley the girl … but the nurse got us mixed up"._

" _Wait", Daryl stopped her, "You're a twin?"_

" _Younger by three minutes", she smiled, "My mama didn't even know that she was pregnant with twins until the last trimester", she looked at him again, "I pray that your brother is alive, and well", she told him._

" _Why?" he jeered, "Ya didn't know him"._

" _True, but … I know what it is like to lose a brother, even, if he was –" Merricat stopped herself short, no, she wouldn't talk about that, not with him, no one needed to know about any of that. But Daryl was rather observant, "Even if he was what?"_

" _Nothing", Merricat spoke quickly, "I never told you what I was"._

" _What you were?"_

" _Before all this", she mused, "But I don't think I will – you'd laugh at me"._

 _She peaked the man's curiosity, "You think I care enough to laugh? C'mon now, fair trade, I told ya what I was doin before the world went ta shit"._

 _Merricat laughed, and scratched mindlessly at her neck, "Well, I was in college, Brown actually, and well, I worked at this Piano Bar, The Duplex"._

" _You a waitress?" he asked, and he swore that the girl blushed, "Not exactly … I was a singer". Daryl stared at her blankly, before erupting into laughter._

" _You're such a dick!" she scowled, her cheeks turning bright red as she slapped his arm._

" _Jesus, a feel bad for any of em eejits who had to sit around listenin' to you screech", he smirked. Merricat scoffed, crossing her arms, "I'll have you know I'm a classically trained soprano", she huffed in annoyance, but that only continued the man's laughter, "Hell, I knew you were a rich girl, had it pegged from the moment a' met you"._

" _What made you think that?" she chastised._

" _Cause even with an arrow in your arm, ya still walked around with a stick up your ass"._

"Daryl!" he heard Rick call his name, and it roused him from his daydream, Jesus can't have a second to myself. Daryl huffed and emerged grumpily from his tent. Rick waited outside for him, "Thank you", he said quickly.

"For what?" Daryl asked, confused.

"For bringing her back, Carol told me what happened", Rick explained.

He wiped his mouth, "next time a won't", he warned.

Rick suppressed his smile, but continued anyway, "Then you really ain't going to like what I'm about to say". Daryl glared at the man, God only knows where he was going with this. "I was hoping that you'd keep an eye on her for me, in case she goes wandering again".

Daryl huffed, "What am I? A fuckin babysitter now?"

"She hasn't been thinkin straight, you know that, not since…" Rick found himself unable to finish his sentence, he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. But the look in his eyes said it all, and not even Daryl could deny it.

"I wouldn't ask if I didn't think it necessary", Rick finished.

Daryl made an incoherent noise, but grimly nodded his head, "Aight, aight, fine, happy?"

"More relieved", Rick admitted, "Hell, she won't listen to any of us, maybe you can make her see sense".

Daryl snorted, and Rick took his que to leave him in peace. The man didn't know what to think, why was it that anything anyone ever wanted to talk about with him was _her_. Its not as if he and that goddamn woman were joined at the hip, its not as if they liked being around each other. She annoyed the shit outta him, college educated broad – he knew the type. Kinda dame that thinks she's somethin just cause her daddy's got green to burn. Drivin' fancy ass cars, partying with designer drugs without a care in the world. _**The kinda woman**_ , he could hear Merle sneer within his mind, _**that don't give a second glance to a man like you**_. He grimaced, but his eye caught a glance at the bracelet that now always hung from his wrist, the arrowhead glinting in the sunlight. _The little girl ain't like that_ , he found himself thinking, but then scolded himself, _that's cause she's too young, don't know nothin bout' anythin yet_.

He found the two girls perched outside their tent, Sophie sat in front of her sister with a doll in her lap, whilst Merricat braided the child's long hair, singing as she did so.

" _ **But if I know you, I know what you'll do**_

 _ **You'll love me at once**_

 _ **The way you did once upon a dream"**_

"Oh, sing it again Merricat!" the little girl cooed, and her sister smiled, "That's the third time! I'll have no voice left", she laughed as her nimble fingers worked away – the braid was intricate and extremely elaborate, like nothing Daryl had ever seen before.

"A hope that some day I'll find a prince who'll kill a dragon for me", Sophie sighed dreamily, causing her sister to chuckle, "Maybe you will", she hummed.

"Oh, I know I will!" the girl exclaimed, "An we'll have a big wonderful wedding, and I'll wear a big princess dress and ride off to his castle!"

"You have it all planned out, don't you?" Merricat laughed, that same laugh, it echoed in his ears.

"Won't you get married though?" Sophie asked eagerly.

Merricat smiled, "I don't think so".

"But why not?"

"Because", Merricat giggled, "If you're the pretty princess … then that makes me the wicked witch!" and she leaped to pretend to pounce on the girl, who squealed in delight as her sister pretended to nip her toes and tickled her stomach.

"Merricat, stop!" she giggled, and the two girls laughed hysterically as they collapsed on one another. "Mr Dixon!" she exclaimed as her eyes locked on him, Sophie wriggled to her feet and bounded forward, hugging him tightly. "Easy kid", he grumbled, but he did not push the little girl away. Merricat's smile had been wiped clean off her face and replaced with a frown. Yes, she had calmed down from earlier – that didn't mean that she was any less pissed off.

"Merricat and I was tellin stories", Sophie smiled her big toothy grin, and clasped at his hand.

"Yes", Merricat smiled politely. Her sister dragged the man forward and beckoned him to sit down, but he remained standing.

"About Sleepin' Beauty!" Sophie continued, "She's a princess who pricked her finger on a rose and fell into a deep, deep sleep, but she get's woken up by a prince with a kiss!" The girl was practically glowing as she laughed and clang to the man's hand, beckoning him closer. "Finish the story Merricat!" she begged her sister.

The woman in turn rolled her eyes, but spoke softly, "After Prince Philip defeated the evil queen, he rode tiredly on his valiant white horse, his armour dented, and his face caked in grime and dirt. He wearily made his way back to the castle, were all within were still trapped in their deep, deep slumber", her voice was melodious as she painted the scene so vividly for Sophie, that the little girl could see it unfold before her eyes. "He climbed all one thousand steps, up into the Princess' tower. He made his way quietly inside, finding the Princess Aurora laid out on a beautiful satin bed, her long golden hair spilled out around her. Her fairy godmothers wept as they knelt next to the bed, their tears turning to rose petals as they touched the stone-tiled floor of the bedchamber. But then, the prince made his way to the princess's side, and took her cold hand in his, before leaning down, and kissing her gently on her lips". Sophie gasped in awe as she always did and rested her head upon her hands with a dreamy look on her face. "And with a magically shimmer of light, the Princess opened her eyes, the spell was broken by true love's kiss. And all the castle's inhabitants woke up singing, Aurora and Philip were married that night, and all throughout the kingdom celebrated, and they lived happily ever after". Merricat did as was asked of her, finishing the story once more.

"Ain't that jus' the most divine thing you ever heard?" Sophie sighed, her big eyes gazing up at Daryl, he shifted uncomfortably on his feet, "hmm".

"Were you ever married?" she asked him innocently, however Daryl felt as though the air had been knocked out of him, "Fuck no"

"Language!" Merricat scowled, pointing the young child. She turned to her sister, "Go on and get changed for dinner, you've been in the same clothes for days now".

Sophie groaned, stomping her feet in refusal, "But Merricat".

"But nothin, go on now", Merricat ushered the girl into the tent, before turning to face the man she was so desperately restraining herself from punching in the gut. "I take it that you didn't come over here to listen ta fairy stories and songs", she shot with a stern expression, "what do you want Dixon?"

He frowned in annoyance, crossing his arms tightly, "Rick asked me ta see yah".

"Why?"

"Cause you've been actin batshit crazy" he answered with a brutal honesty,

"Excuse me?"

"You ain't sleepin, barely eatin, pacin around camp at night and prayin like a nun", he spoke frankly. Merricat blanched at his words, her lips drawing into a thin line, she couldn't exactly deny his observations, but she wasn't particularly happy about it being flaunted in front of her like dirty laundry. Her chest puffed out as she felt her fists clench, "And, and what concern is that of yours?" she stuttered angrily, "or Ricks, what I do in my own time has nothing to do with you!"

Daryl glanced her up and down, and to her disgust, he snorted loudly. "No concern of ours, huh?" he began, his words spitting venom, "So a guess it's no concern if you fall asleep on watch cause ya made yourself stay up all night three nights in row. No concern of ours if yah freeze up in front a' geeks an' get yourself or someone else killed. Fuckin no concern of ours if yah go wanderin about by yourself, get your dumbass killed, an leave that lil' girl stranded with the last of her kin dead".

Merricat's expression had gone as rigid as stone. Her eyes burned with such fire that had the flames been real they would have scorched Daryl to the bone. She was angry, seething, but not at the man before her, at herself. She thought that she was functioning well … that she was coping. But clearly, she'd been wrong. She glanced anxiously at the orange tent. What would happen if she died? Sophie would be completely orphaned. Who would sing her songs? Who would tell her stories? Who would protect her, hold her at night? She looked again at Daryl, why, why did he have to be right? Had the world finally gone utterly mad? She had an obvious choice to make – continue to be blind, go on as she was and get herself or someone else killed … or swallow her pride. It should have been an easy choice to make, but her pride was one of her greatest flaws, a trait of her father embedded into her very being. Merricat opened her mouth, but she bobbed like a fish, no words would come. Daryl continued to glare at her, he wasn't going to wait around for a response, Rick had asked him to talk to her, he had talked to her. He sniffed loudly, and wiped the sweat from his brow, before turning on his heels.

She didn't call him back, she simply couldn't. _Damn, stupid man_. _Damn him to hell._ Merricat sighed, raking her hand through her hair, she cold feel her locks coated with sweat and grease. Dear God, she needed to bathe. "Right, _right"_ , she muttered to herself, she had to bring her brain back into check, not for her own sake, far more people were dependent on her now. "Sophie!" she hollered.

"Yes Merricat?"

"You can go play with Sophia and Carl for a while, there's some things a' gotta do", she told her, and began walking in the direction of the RV.

Both Dale and Andrea were inside. The older woman sat next to the small table her with gun perched in front of her, she just stared at it blankly. Merricat was about to talk to her, but hesitated, no, better to sort herself out first before trying to tackle other people's problems. "Hello Dale", she greeted the man.

"Hiya Merr, feelin a bit better?" he asked her optimistically.

Merricat lowered her gaze, "A apologise for being short with you earlier", she said, "I know that you are only lookin' out for me".

Dale gave her a small, reassuring smile. "It's alright, can't say that I blame you. You've been under the spotlight recently, I'd probably snap too".

"Thank you", she added, and removed the rifle from around her shoulder, "Here, a was hopin you could hold on to this for me", she handed it to him, "I won't be needin' it for a while".

Her actions only widened his smile as his eyes shone brightly, "I know this must be difficult for you, but you are doing the right thing … stepping back for a bit. You need to rest. We're all here for you". Merricat nodded, and the old man placed a firm hand on her shoulder, "You aren't on your own anymore, it doesn't have to all fall to you. You've helped us in so many ways, made us stronger. Let us help you". Merricat felt her heart swell at his words, he couldn't have possibly meant it … he was just being kind is all. Once more she found herself lost for words, and simply nodded her head frantically.

Merricat left the RV feeling a whirlwind of emotions, a heaviness in her heart, but a light step in her feet. She walked immediately over to the Tucson, were he found Rick with the map laid out over the hood. "Hiya", she called, her hands sheepishly tucked into her pockets. Rick looked up with a relaxed expression, and smiled warmly, "Hullo Merr".

"You still pourin over that thing?" she nodded at the map, "Can't have changed too much since the last time ya looked at it".

Rick chuckled, scratching his stubble, "Just … reassuring myself, that we're taken the best route to Fort Benning".

"We'll get there soon Rick, don't worry too much about it", she tried to comfort him, "An, if it is a dead end, I'm sure we'll find somethin".

"You got a crystal ball you haven't told me about?" he laughed, and Merricat tapped her green eye with a smirk, "A don't need a crystal ball to tell yah that the people here are tough sons' a bitches, we've made do this far", and the two shared a brief feeling of contentment, "Any way", the woman coughed, "A was wonderin if I could grab a few pills".

Rick raised an eyebrow, his smile fading, "What kinda pills?"

Merricat felt embarrassment creep through, "Just, two or three sleepin pills from our supplies, yeah know, jus, just ta get me a bit more into a routine".

Rick's face immediately picked up, "A thought you didn't want to take them?" he regretted the question as soon as he asked it, he was happy that she had finally agreed to take them.

The girl shuffled awkwardly on her feet, "Well, like what you an' everybody else has been sayin, am no good the way I am right now … need ta get myself back on track".

"I won't lie", Rick breathed, "I am happy to hear it, I need ya in one piece if we're gonna get everyone to Fort Benning safe an' sound … an' that includes you", he scratched his head, and looked down guiltily, "A should've protected you better, should'a never let that man anywhere near you".

Merricat's whole body immediately went rigid, "Rick don't", she warned gravely, "That, was not your fault", she forced the man to make eye contact with her, "A made the call to bring them back, I brought danger into this camp, that is on me, not you". Rick stared at her, "Merricat, tell me, tell me you don't honestly believe that –

She raised her hand dismissively, silencing him, "Rick, it's okay. No need to keep draggin it up", her eyes wandered, she could see Daryl in his normal isolation, gutting the squirrels he had brought back for their supper. He seemed even surlier than usual, and once he realised that there was eyes on him, he looked up to give the girl a menacing glare. Merricat felt her mouth go dry as an unmistakable pang of guilt surged in her stomach. She tore her eyes away, but Rick had been watching her carefully. "What happened this time?" he asked.

The girl found herself balancing on the balls of her feet, "We talked like you asked him too".

"And?"

"And the usual thing happened when Daryl an' I are left alone for five minutes", she sighed angrily.

"You two will make your peace with each other, you always do", Rick assured her.

"You make it sound like it's a regular occurrence", Merricat huffed with crossed arms.

"Well … Dale has taken ta usin' the phrase: y'all are fightin' like Merricats and Daryls", Rick smirked, and the young woman slapped him on the arm, "Shut up!" but the two laughed lightly, even if it was quiet, it was still like the sound of hope ringing in their ears. Merricat could see it clearly etched upon the Deputy Sherriff's face, he desperately needed it to lift his spirits.

Daryl eyed the two of them as they talked, Rick and Merricat. He couldn't hear what they were saying. Rick said something that made them both laugh, she smiled, and patted him gently on the shoulder before taking her leave. Rick smiled as he watched her go, before returning to consult his map, beckoning Shane away from his rifles. Daryl found himself distracted by the whole scene, what had been so funny? What had he said to make her laugh? Why the fuck did he care?

"Fuck!" he snarled suddenly as he whipped up his hand, apparently, he had been so distracted that he had gone and sliced his thumb instead of the squirrel. He was seething with rage, at her, at Rick, and at himself for getting all riled up over nothin. _**Jesus, you some kinda homo now?**_ Merle's voice echoed once more, reminding him of how utterly ridicules he was being. Damn college educated broad … why in god's name should he care if Rick made her laugh, or if she wandered into the woods and got herself killed … he _should have_ left her there, would have served her right for thinkin that she knows better than everyone else all'a the damn time. His mind wandered back to how she had exploded at him, well, even hew knew that it wasn't directed at him specifically, the broad had been having some kinda meltdown, she could've been screaming at a tree and she would 'a still said the same stuff. _Yes, that wired fool tried to rape me – twice._ Daryl felt his anger spike once more as he saw Logan's visage in his mind, Merricat had skimped on the details of what had actually happened in the car when those two scumbags had tried to drive off with her and all their supplies – she didn't need to – his imagination did all of the work for him. He could see that piece a' shit pointing the gun at her, running his hands all over her, she wouldn't be cowering or pleading – damn woman was far too tough for any of that shit. But still, he had seen the fear in her eyes that night, and that image of those mismatched eyes of hers looking like that again … it just made his blood fucking boil. That image kept replaying over and over – taunting him. The same feelings of helplessness returned, how he just stood by and watched as she was hauled away. Why the fuck hadn't they just dealt with em' there and then, hell, at least why did they not even tie the bastards up? What'd they think was gonna happen? His mind raced – his thoughts speeding too fast for him to catch them.

"Mr Dixon?"

Daryl looked up from his work to see blue eyes staring up at him. The little girl had done as her sister commanded and changed into cleaner clothes. Her cheeks were slightly sunburnt, and her eyes appeared droopy and tired. "Shouldn't you be in your tent?" he commented.

"Is' too hot in there", she complained, "can a sit with you?"

"Am guttin ese squirrels here", Daryl warned her, but the child shook her head, "A don't mind em' anymore". Daryl rolled the idea around in his mouth before nodding his approval. Sophie flung herself close beside him, content to watch him in silence.

Daryl had the thirteen squirrels skinned and ready for the fire in no time. T-Dog had slapped his back in approval, grinning from ear to ear, "You did good man!" Neither Daryl nor the little girl beside him responded.

"Why do you an' Mary fight so much?" Sophie asked him abruptly, Daryl had been anticipating some kind of remark from her, he was in fact surprised by her patience in waiting so long. He shrugged his shoulders, "We disagree on some things".

"On alotta things", the little girl corrected him, "she gets mad when she fights with you".

"People get angry when they fight", he admitted curtly.

"She gets sad too", Sophie sighed wearily, "When she thinks nobody is lookin". Daryl looked at the girl as a feeling of discomfort washed over him, he was sure as hell that he didn't want to hear this.

"People get sad sometimes too", he tried to counter her as he scratched his head.

"I make her sad", Sophie told him as she huddled her knees.

"No, you don't", Daryl snapped at her, "She loves ya".

"An that's why a' make her sad, when a get sick it scares her", Sophie murmured, but then looked up at him with bright eyes, "You're real nice to me Mr Dixon, a' know Mary can be a bearcat, but she's real good, honest, can you both be friends?"

Daryl coughed to voice his displeasure at the request, it was the equivalent of asking him to run a marathon, climb Kilimanjaro and swim the length of Niagara Falls all in the same damn day. However, all of those options seemed more preferable. He didn't need friends – especially not with the pussies in this camp, he tolerated their presence, they tolerated his. With Merle gone, he had no better plan of what to do. Tagging along with them seemed like the best option. "Please mister Dixon sir, you're such a good friend ta me a'ready, pretty please?"

Why did the kid have to look at him like that? Why couldn't she just leave him the hell alone? Play with Sophia or Carl or bug someone else. But he couldn't deny those damn eyes of hers, eyes that were nothin like her sister's. "I'll see", he answered her finally. Sophie smiled her tell-tale toothy grin, and hugged him tightly, "A thank God every night for bringing you ta us", she told him gleefully.

"C'mon now", he muttered, "No need for 'at, a'right?" and he pulled the girl off of him, "Shit", he groaned upon seeing that the kid now had squirrel guts and blood on her shirt. "A gotta go change before Merricat finds out, I'll see you at supper!"

With that the little girl scampered off from sight. Daryl exhaled a breath that he hadn't realised he'd been holding, raking a weary hand through his hair. Looks like that moment of peace to himself that he'd been longing for would never come.

* * *

Night came over the camp quickly enough. There were higher spirits with food in the belly, T-Dog cracked jokes and told stories. Shane and Daryl were on patrol, to Merricat's relief, happy to always be at a distance from Shane, and happier to not be around Daryl, she knew that she was acting the coward, but she couldn't bear to face him after their earlier altercation. Instead she sat next to Glenn, who seemed to be particularly melancholy that evening.

"What's got you so glum, huh?" she pried, poking him with her elbows with a slight grin.

He sighed heavily, "Nothin"

Merricat raised her eyebrow, "Well clearly it ain't nothin, you got a face like a horse's ass".

"That makes me feel so much better", he snapped, and shoved a large forkful of fried squirrel into his mouth.

She chuckled, "C'mon on now hon, what's eating at yah, cause' it isn't that squirrel".

Glenn looked at her solemnly, "Do you think that I'll ever find love?"

Merricat found herself choking hoarsely, a fragment of bone catching in her throat at the least convenient moment. "s'cuse me?" she coughed.

He sighed once more, "Well, think about it. Half of the population of America is gone … and well, if it's just us until we eventually die from ravenous walkers, I'll never, yeah know, find a girl".

"Right now," she told him sternly as she set her finished plate to the side, "To quote yourself, we live in a world with ravenous walkers, and getting laid is your biggest concern?"

Glenn gave her a pleading look, "It isn't just about sex!" he protested, "I mean, look at Rick and Lori they've got each other for the rest of the apocalypse, and you're like my baby sister".

"Gee, thanks", she smirked teasingly.

"And so, like … am I just going to die alone? Is this all there is?" he wavered with uncertainty.

Merricat tried her hardest to appear sympathetic, and so fought to disguise the amusement in her voice, the last thing she wanted was for Glenn to feel that she was minimizing his emotions, even if it was the kind that should have been the least of their concerns.

"Well, you're forgetting that we are going to Fort Benning, for all we know it could still be secure … and if it is, I'm sure as hell certain that it couldn't be a complete sausage fest, their might already be a functioning community there", Merricat tried to assure him, "Like you said, half the population was wiped out, the other half can't have all just up and left. We're bound to encounter more people on the road", the young man looked at her with a more uplifted expression. "And besides", she smiled with a gentle hand on his arm, "You aren't alone. We might not be much, but there's people here lookin' out for you".

"You're such a mother", Glenn smirked, but clearly her pep talk what worked as his demeanour had been taken up a notch. "Don't complain if it's workin", she quipped slyly before rummaging her hands into her pockets. Merricat held the sleeping pills tightly in her palm, she had been excused from night watch for that evening, T-Dog had volunteered to take her shift. The woman sucked a deep breath as Glenn eyed her cautiously, "You're doing the right thing yeah know".

"mph".

"Seriously … you need to sleep Merricat, you're starting to look like a geek", Glenn added.

"You're funny", she grumbled, before forcing the plastic capsules into the back of her mouth, she swallowed them bitterly with a swig of her canteen. She felt miserable, but at least everyone would be able to stop holding their breaths around her. "A think I'm gonna hit the hay", she told Glenn quickly, "Yeah know, see if these things are more than sugar pills".

* * *

Merricat retreated to her tent, being the first time in her memory that she had gone to bed before Sophie. Her sister had purposefully chewed each morsel of her dinner a hundred times over just so that she could stay up as late as possible. She liked spending time with Carol, Carl and Sophia, who she had warmed to considerably, and, like any six-year-old, dreaded bedtime. Merricat lay down on her sleeping bag, it was a particularly humid evening, and she could already feel her skin stick to the fabric of her clothing, making her extremely uncomfortable. _Well there's no way I'm getting any sleep like this_. Ever since her first night at camp, Merricat had taken to sleeping with her clothes and shoes on, so that if there was another attack by any walkers, she'd be ready. But tonight, given the circumstances, it only seemed sensible to slip into something remotely more comfortable. She rummaged in her bag, and retrieved a plain white t-shirt, it had been kept pristinely clean with its lack of use, and it was four times too big for her small frame. Merricat wriggled out of her clothes, folding them neatly and leaving them and her boots tightly packed at the opposite corner of the tent. She slipped on the t-shirt over her underwear, it was an instant relief. The young woman lay back down, she tried to empty her mind of all thoughts, focusing on the roof of the tent, she fidgeted with anticipation, wanting sleep to overcome her quickly. Nothing seemed to work, and so, with great reluctance, Merricat began to sing quietly to herself; her mother's song. Not the song she sang Sophie, no, the secret one. The one she would sing to her when she was a child – just between the two of them.

 _ **Schoolbag in hand, she leaves home in the early morning**_

 _ **Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile**_

 _ **I watch her go with a surge of that well-known sadness**_

 _ **And I have to sit down for a while**_

 _ **The feeling that I'm losing her forever**_

 _ **And without really entering her world**_

 _ **I'm glad whenever I can share her laughter**_

 _ **That funny little girl**_

 _ **Slipping through my fingers all the time**_

 _ **I try to capture every minute**_

 _ **The feeling in it**_

 _ **Slipping through my fingers all the time**_

 _ **Do I really see what's in her mind?**_

 _ **Each time I think I'm close to knowing**_

 _ **She keeps on growing**_

 _ **Slipping through my fingers all the time**_

 _Merricat did not make it to second verse, without realising, a surge of exhaustion struck her like a wave crashing onto shore, within minutes, her eyelids closed and her breathing deepened._

" _Professor Icke has it fucking out for me, I swear", Justin groaned as he toked the blunt in his hand before passing it to Mel. She chuckled as she took it from him, inhaling deeply, "You're just pissy because he graded your last paper a 55"._

" _It was worth a 72 at least!" he protested with a great heave of his shoulders, "Isn't that right Mary?"_

 _Mary Katherine smirked at her friend, taking her drink away from her lips, "Well, you did leave it until the last minute to write"._

" _So did you!" he snapped bitterly, taking another hit from the joint, "You want some?" he offered._

" _Nah", she declined, "I have work tonight"._

 _David scoffed at her, his warm chestnut eyes rolling dramatically, "Like Nick-the-dick will care if you show up stoned"._

 _Mary Katherine eyed her friend with a mischievous grin, "Still pining over my boss then? Besides, I have patrol with Rick at sun up"._

" _With who?" David looked at her quizzical, which Mary Katherine was completely oblivious to._

 _The trio of friends were lounging in Mary Katherine's old dorm room, it was winter in Rhode Island, snow had settled on the grounds of the small university town, couples and groups of friends laughed and chatted as they walked to and from classes, totally unaware of what lay ahead._

" _I'm surprised that Nick still lets you work there", Mel teased lightly, "considering you're a murderer"._

 _Mary Katherine froze, gazing at her friend, "What?" she asked uneasily._

 _Mel seemed not to hear her, and she turned to Justin, "You should just blow Icke, then I'd bet he'd higher your grade!" she giggled._

" _You're so funny", Justin replied dryly, but then gazed down at his phone, "Shit Mary, it's six-thirty, don't you need to go to work soon?"_

" _Yes, she groaned, and stood up, her hair was much shorter then, straightened and styled to resemble Emma Watson's current hairstyle. She made a dash for her wardrobe and retrieved her work uniform – an emerald green evening dress. She had no shame in undressing in front of her friends and slipping it on, "Shit Mel, where'd you put my heels?"_

" _Oh God Mary – I think I left them in Tony DeMarco's dorm room", her friend replied bashfully._

 _Mary Katherine raised an eyebrow, "Seriously, you're hooking up with Tony DeMarco now?"_

 _Mel smirked, "Well, he might not be much of a talker"._

"– _or a thinker", Mary interjected._

" _But he makes up for it in other ways …"_

 _Mary Katherine rolled her eyes and slipped on a pair of plain black pumps instead. "Justin can you give me a ride?"_

" _You're asking me to drive high?" he challenged her._

" _Fine", she groaned, "I'll see if Daryl will give me a ride on his bike"._

" _Who?"_

 _But Merricat did not notice her friend's confusion as she grabbed her coat and purse, "Don't wait up for me, love yah's!"_

 _In lieu of not being able to find Daryl, Merricat hailed down a cab. She reached The Duplex within what had felt like seconds. Time jumped, and suddenly she was already up onstage with the band playing behind her._

 _ **You came you saw you conquered me**_

 _ **When you did that to me**_

 _ **I knew somehow this had to be**_

 _ **The winds of March that make my heart a dancer**_

 _ **A telephone that rings but who's to answer?**_

 _ **Oh, how the ghost of you clings!**_

 _ **These foolish things remind me of you**_

 _The seated crowd applauded, Mary gave small bow, and gestured to the white coats band behind her. She walked gracefully from the stage, a waiter approached her with a Manhattan in hand, "From a gentleman admirer at the bar", he told her, Mary Katherine blushed, and took it shyly. She had become accustomed to such tokens. The waiter pointed her in the direction of a young man facing away from her, dressed in a black suit. She walked quickly over to him, and spoke with a small smile, "I wanted to thank you for the drink"._

" _My pleasure, Merricat". The man turned, his neck was twisted at a horrible angle, half of his jaw was hanging off by a few threads of skin. His were brown, and his hair a sandy blonde damped with fresh blood._

" _Logan"._

" _Yew s-an-g bewautifally", he slurred and tried to speak as his jaw flapped horribly, "Excese me", and he moved his hand, and took the piece of jaw and slotted it back into place as if it were a puzzle piece. "That's better"._

" _You're dead", Merricat spoke flatly._

" _Yes, yes I am", he smiled, and wrapped an arm tightly around her waist and guided her away, "You should know … you killed me"._

 _Logan guided Merricat through the crowds of people, she was helpless not to follow, as if caught in a trance. He brought her outside, into the alley way next to the Duplex building. A man sat slumped on a wooden crate with his head buried in his hands, muttering feebly to himself._

" _Come on now buddy, cheer up!" Logan announced loudly as he pushed Merricat forward, "I've brought you a friend!"_

 _The man raised his head, his mouth gaped open, drool dribbling down his chin, "A fwiend?" It was Andre. He looked at Merricat, who watched him in horror, "Mewy?"_

" _You're, you're alive?" she gasped._

" _Not quite", Logan sighed, "Do a turn Andre". He did as he was told, and wobbly turned away from them, revealing the massive hole in the back of his head. "Hasn't been the same since you murdered him, poor guy, bullet lodged in his brain, messed him up pretty badly"._

" _Why, why, why Mewy? A was not bad, not like, not like him", Andre pointed to Logan, "I no huwt yew"._

 _Merricat felt the tears rush to her eyes, "I'm, I'm so sorry Andre", she quivered, "I didn't mean to – it was an accident – we were both grabbing for the gun – he was pulling it in all directions … I, I didn't mean to pull the trigger!"_

" _Mewy I try help yew, I was not bad, I was not bad", Andre cried feebly, "But yew killed me"._

" _I'm so sorry", she cried again, and tried to get away, but Logan pinned her tightly, "Are you any better than us?" he challenged her, "You killed us Merricat. You're a murderer"._

" _You were going to rape me!" she protested through tears._

" _And the punishment for that is death? Face it Merricat. You're a killer. A killer!" He pushed her hard into the centre of the alleyway, "And killers are killers. Murderers get what they deserve", Logan menaced as he opened the fire door of the Duplex, and out pooled a group of walkers. They fixed their eyes on her and began to trudge forward. Merricat bolted down the alleyway, but it was no use, dead end. She spun on the balls of her feet, the pack of walkers were closing down, now headed by a zombified Logan and Andre gnashing their teeth and groaning. She stood frozen in fear, no one to save her, no weapon, no way out. "Please, please", she wept as she backed up against the wall. The first walker grabbed her by the leg and pulled her to the groaned screaming as the dead collapsed on her, "Please!"_

Merricat woke up gasping for breath. She clutched at her throat as she lurched forward, her face stained with tears and the rest of her body drenched in sweat. It was pitch black, the tent was too small, everything was too small. Sophie asleep beside her, but that gave no comfort. Her heart pounded, her chest shook and tightened. She was having a heart attack. She couldn't breathe. No, she was having a panic attack. Merricat clambered forward, out from her tent. It was still too hot outside, why was everything so hot? She raked her hands violently through her hair. Everything was going far too quickly. It took Merricat seconds to realise that she was crying loudly, and she clamped her hands tightly over her mouth to muffle the tears. She could still feel the walkers' hands all over her body, still feel the, pressing down onto her skin, on the cusp of ripping into her flesh …

"Oh dear god!" she cried suddenly, why was everything still going so fast? Why was everything too small? She had to get out. She had to get. Out. Merricat began walking barefoot, away from the camp, in the opposite direction of the woods, she was walking towards the highway.

Merricat didn't no how long she had been walking for. Her feet ached and left little imprints of blood on the unforgiving tarmac. She hugged herself tightly, she wanted to walk until she could physically not go any further. Logan's voice still rang in her ears. _Murderer. Murderer_. He was right, of course he was. She was a murderer, and murderers got what they deserved. She had walked through a patch of broken glass not long ago; little imprints of blood had turned to portraits of the soles of her feet painted in crimson. A macabre trail of breadcrumbs. She was freezing now, the weather had not changed, but still Merricat's entire body was ice cold.

She had been used to the silence around her so long that, when she heard the roar of the motorcycle, Merricat was at first convinced that it was a raging thunderstorm. The bike's headlights illuminated the road as it sped ahead of her, making a violent U-turn before coming to a halt. Merricat finally stopped walking and stood still as Daryl Dixon angrily got off his motorcycle and charged angrily in her direction.

"Have you gone absolutely bat shit crazy?" he roared at her, "Have you lost your fucking mind? What in hell, what, just what do you think you are doing?" Merricat winced as his fury managed to snap her back into reality. "Walking off in the fucking middle of the night, in, in what, a shirt? Not so much as boots on her feet? Do you have a death wish or som'? Jesus Christ woman, do you know how many walkers are crawlin on this highway? Are you that plain dumb?" he bellowed mercilessly at her.

"Daryl stop", she whispered, but the man could barely hear her, "What if I hadn't seen that you were gone, huh? You'd be fucking dead. Thought you were gonna cut this shit out? Instead you just up the ante?"

"Daryl, please, stop".

"You honestly think is' is a hoot or som', you crazy broad get a kick outta nearly getting yourself killed, or is it just –

"DARYL PLEASE JUST STOP IT", Merricat finally screamed at the top of her lungs. That silenced the man, who now only properly looked at her. The headlights did her no favours, she was as white as a sheet and shaking like a leaf, dressed in nothing but a skimpy white sleep shirt with feet coated in blood. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her dried lips quivered fiercely, Merricat looked like something straight out of a horror movie. He saw that same fear in her eyes, that same look of dread. "What, what's wrong with you?" his tone was bordering on sympathetic, but it was clear that his anger at her had not been entirely moved.

Merricat looked at him, not knowing once again on how to respond, she felt so lost, nothing like herself, no, in fact, she felt _**exactly**_ like herself … how she was before. "I killed two people".

Daryl's brows knitted together, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Merricat sucked in a breath, "Logan, A-Andre … I killed them".

"Merricat, they tried to, tried to, yeah know … and is' not your fault that the car crashed", Daryl found himself trying to reason with her, but the girl wagged her head, "But it was my fault". She raked her hands through her hair again, "I just wanted him to stop", she whispered, "His, his hands. Running all over me. The gun pointed at me. I couldn't, couldn't stand it. I just wanted him to stop". Merricat diverted her eyes away from him, too ashamed of what she was. "I made a grab for the gun. A thought, if I could get it, I could make em' let me go. But we fought so hard over it, he wouldn't let go of it. A didn't mean to pull the trigger". Daryl's face went rigid as the resolution of the events came to him, and he knew already exactly what happened next. "The gun went off, it hit Andre, and the car went flying … and you, you know the rest". Merricat forced herself to meet Daryl's gaze, his expression as unreadable as always, and she feared that it signalled the worst, "You have to believe me, I didn't mean to kill them. But, I, I know that doesn't change the fact that I did, oh God", she felt as though her heart was about to burst, she couldn't bear it any longer.

Daryl on the other hand processed everything that she had just told him, and quite frankly, it took a lot to refrain himself from physically shaking the sense back into her. "So at's why you've been actin' so looney toons lately, cause you thought that Rick an' the rest of us didn't know what went down, cause you thought you were a murderer?" he asked her slowly.

Merricat froze, " _What?"_

"You think that a' didn't put two an' two together when a' hauled you from at' crash? That a' didn't see that Andre had his brains blown out? Red…", his expression softened somewhat, "We know what happened, Rick knows, he doesn't think you're a murderer, an neither do I".

"How can you say that if you know what happened?" she choked, "If it wasn't for me –

"– if it weren't for you two rapists would have rode off with is' entire group's supplies an left you dead on the highway, it don't make you a murderer for tryin' ta defend yourself", he snapped.

"But" –

"But nothin", Daryl told her firmly, "A won't say it again, you ain't a murderer an you didn't do anythin wrong, now c'mon, let's get you back".

Merricat couldn't believe it, he knew all this time? Rick as well? She immediately felt the fool, humiliated by her mental anguish, she wearily shook her head, then thought a minute. "Daryl?" she called softly, and he turned to her, "Yeah?"

She walked a few paces forward, closing the gap between them, and, to his utter shock and amazement, Merricat wrapped her arms around him, and hugged the man tightly. Daryl felt completely stomped as he felt the heat from her body radiate onto him. It was a pleasant sensation, his nerve endings felt as though they had been set alight as she held him gently. He didn't return the gesture … he was too terrified to move. "Thank you", she muttered, "for everything", and the woman broke away from him. He stared at her, only capable of nodding. The two walked over to the motorcycle, Merricat feeling slightly less nervous than the first time as she held tightly onto his waist. And they rode off, their silhouettes enveloped into the night.

* * *

 _ **Thoughts?**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Hello, hello, hello! Oh my God, two updates in one week? This is a first for me! First off, thanks so much again for all the awesome feedback! I really do appreciate, although I do apologise, this chapter sticks quite rigidly to the events of the show … well particularly to the events of S01x2 – that's right, we're in to season 2! But of course, I have to apologise once more if the dialogue again seems just like a bad case of déjà vu, sadly it must be done to integrate Merricat properly into the story, but don't worry, more original stuff is coming! So enjoy!**

 **Also, this chapter is dedicated to devil dog 35, first of all because she's always been awesome, and also because she left a lovely review!**

* * *

 _ **Six**_

 _One Week Later_

Although there many things that Merricat could complain about the RV, such as the cramped conditions, Dale's off tune singing and the proximity of Shane, there was one, sole factor, that redeemed all the negatives:

Air conditioning.

Merricat titled her head against the window, Sophie sat half asleep in her lap, having been struck with another seizure three days before, she was still recovering. Merricat herself sat in silence as Shane taught Andrea how to clean her gun, the man was still oblivious to Merricat's uneasiness around him, partly by her own doing – she had been making a conscious effort to rid herself of her amnesty towards the man – what was the point? The group's survival depended on everyone working together, she'd be only making things difficult if she kept desperately avoiding him, Shane wasn't going anywhere. And besides, no altercation like it had occurred since the CDC, the more time past, the more it appeared to have just been a one-off argument. Though her gut told her otherwise, Merricat knew she had to let bygones be bygones, and work towards rebuilding a relationship with Shane. Like it or not, he was her people, and like she would for Rick, Lori, Carol and all the others, she would lay down her life to protect him.

There convoy had been moving smoothly enough, more vehicles had been abandoned. Daryl as always took point on his bike, the RV following, and Rick and others closely behind.

"Ah geez", Merricat's ears perked up as she heard Dale sigh in frustration, she glanced towards Shane and Andrea, before quickly moving Sophie from her knee, and she quickly walked up to the top of the RV. "Oh no", Dale groaned, and Merricat looked to see what had caused the, to stop. A heavy truck lay flat on its side, acting as one long road block. "Shit", she snapped.

Seeing that they had stopped, Daryl immediately circled back, pulling up to Dale's window, "You see a way through?" the old man asked him anxiously, and Daryl merely responded with a nod of his head, beckoning to follow him through the narrow maze of abandoned cars.

Glenn suggested that perhaps turning back was the best option, but as Dale reminded him grimly, no fuel could be spared for such an effort.

They all drove slowly, much to Merricat's dismay – she was thankful that Sophie was asleep. Hundreds of cars ransacked and abandoned, with no sign of life insight. It was a ghoulish and sickening sight as Merricat felt a drop in her stomach. How many people, families, had been trying to escape in these cars, and where did they go?

Her question was answered, gazing inside the windows of the abandoned cars, it turns out that many hadn't been abandoned at all – corpses still sat in the seats that they died in. Merricat made a sign of the cross as they past them. The highway was an open casket.

There was a sudden and rapid sound of gears crunching together as a column of hissing steam shot up out of the engine, and all at once the RV died. Glenn looked up to Merricat, who in turn was staring at Dale, "You have got to be kidding me", she groaned.

Dale went to leave the van, swinging the door open. Merricat immediately went to fetch Sophie, waking her gently, "Was' s'wrong?" she yawned, her eyes barely opening.

"Come on baby, we've stopped for a bit, come on outside", and she hauled the little girl into her arms, bringing her out into the fresh air.

"I said it, didn't I say it?" Dale complained, as the group began to circle around the front of the RV, "a thousand times, dead in the water".

"Problem Dale?" Shane snapped, clearly not impressed by his cynicism.

"Well there's just the small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere", he replied irritably. "With no hope of …" he began to trail off as he watched Daryl begin to pilfer the open trunk of one of the empty cars. "Okay that was dumb", he admitted.

"Can't find a radiator hose here", Shane commented.

"Whole bunch 'a stuff we can find", Daryl retaliated.

"Syphon more fuel from these cars for a start", T-Dog agreed.

"– Maybe some water?"

"– food?"

"This is a graveyard", Lori finally interjected, and all eyes turned to her, "I don't know how I feel about this".

Merricat gave her a sympathetic look, but, was reminded of their situation by the child cradled on her hip, "Lori", she began softly, "I get it, this place, what must of happened here … we should respect the dead but, given the circumstances, we haven't got alotta options".

Everyone else seemed to be in agreement with her, and Shane nodded, "Come on y'all, look around, gather whatcha can".

The group began to disperse and split off, Glenn and Dale stayed to attempt to do what they could with the engine, while the rest would salvage what supplies they could find. Merricat stayed close to Lori and Carol with the other children – she was in a much better mindset ever since her conversation with Daryl a week ago. He had driven her back to camp, helped patch up her bleeding feet, and to save her dignity, had agreed to only confide in Rick what had happened. Since then, she slept better, was more at ease, and though still plagued by panic attacks, she found herself much more able to handle them. Even her limp had left her, and though she kept it for sentimental reasons, she no longer needed the cane that Dale had made for her. Because of these improvements, Merricat found herself once more another integral part of the group, now that she was back to fighting form. And it had been an unspoken arrangement that the women, Lori, Carol and Andrea, would always be accompanied by one of the fighters.

They walked past one of the cars that contained a corpse, killed upon impact. Lori gazed at it sadly before moving on. Even Carol found herself unable to look away, "Kids don't look", she warned them.

They began the solemn task of rummaging through the cars, Sophie was finally fully awake, and sat on the ground close to Merricat as she helped looked through the discarded belongings. Merricat watched as Carol sheepishly began to admire a red top as she placed it against her chest.

"Looks good", she told her, and Carol blushed, "Ed never would let me wear nice things like this", she said.

"My daddy was the same", Merricat tried to laugh, "S'pecially with red. The devil's colour, he use ta call it".

Carol gave her a solemn nod, it was like an expression of solidarity. But it was clear that it made Merricat uncomfortable.

"We'll need clothes", Carol aimed her abrupt statement at Lori, who had been watching the pair. She remained silent and moved on to the next car.

Sophie and Carl began to venture further down, something both mother's immediately picked up on, "Carl", Lori called to him, "Always within my sight, okay?"

"You too Sophia", Carol added, and Merricat felt the need to glance down at Sophie, who looked as though she had fallen back asleep, she smiled sadly, as least she wouldn't be begging to wander off as well.

Merricat pulled Sophie back into her arms, her head flopping loosely onto her shoulder.

"Poor dear", Carol sighed, "Still hasn't gotten over the last one, huh?"

"Naw", Merricat muttered, "last one was rough, but, she'll be right as rain in a few days, she just needs a few more rest, she'll be fine once she sleep's off the worst of it".

"I'm not worried", Carol smiled, "She's a fighter, that sister of yours".

Merricat chuckled lightly, but her laugh faded from her lips as she saw Rick charging towards them, "Lori, under the cars!" he commanded, keeping his voice as low as he could, "Get down now!"

Merricat quickly glanced to Lori and Carol, who both frantically looked around for their children. Carl and Sophia came into view, and they quickly ducked under the nearest cars they could find. Merricat held Sophie tightly into her chest, keeping her shielded from what she knew was surely coming.

They came shuffling as they always did. A hoard of walkers. Merricat kept her lips tightly clamped together as she could see the first of their feet begin to walk slowly past her. It was situations like these that she was best accustomed to, it was like being hunted, the trick was to remain calm, that, and silence. Control your breathing, remain absolutely still. Don't react. She silently thanked God for Sophie being asleep.

 _ **Keep still. A real hunter can slow the beating of their own heart if their skilled enough. Because as every real hunter knows, it's all too easy to become the prey. Is that what you are girl? The prey? I said stay still. Control your breathing. Control your mind. You must not react. A moving prey means a living prey, and that means fresh meat. Is that what you are? Meat for men to sink their teeth into and tear apart? No? Then keep fucking still.**_

Their ambling, their groaning, she could hear everything that past her. Why did they have to make such noises? She could see Lori and Carol underneath the car next to her, Lori was clutching Carol around her mouth, desperate to stifle her cries. _For the love of God Carol, keep quiet_. They were trapped in this one droplet of time, it wouldn't go forward. The walkers kept coming. Dear God, why did they have to move so slowly?

Finally, the walkers seemed to have moved on as silence fell. Merricat knew better than to move yet, there was always stragglers, slow ones, some with missing limbs, that always fell behind the rest of the hoard. Keep calm. Keep your breathing controlled. Keep fucking still.

Her eyes shot to the side of her as she heard movement that most definitely was not a walker. Beyond Lori and Carol she caught glimpses of Sophia beginning to edge herself slowly beneath the car. _Don't, please dear God don't_. But she did, she began to inch herself outwards, and Merricat felt her heart implode.

A straggler walker saw Sophia, and flopped onto its stomach, she began to cry out as it reached in its arm to grab at her. Merricat couldn't contain her terror for the little girl. But God, what could she do as she watched helplessly with her own little girl wrapped inside her arms? She clutched Sophie tighter than ever as she heard Sophia's cries. She had to do something. But Rick beat her to it. He immediately ducked out from his own car and made a run after Sophia and the two walkers, as the three headed into the woods.

No one could wait any longer. Carol desperately clawed herself from Lori's hold and crawled onto her feet sobbing loudly. Lori and Carl swiftly followed, with Merricat at their heels. Carol was inconsolable as she began to walk desperately in the direction of the woods, and Merricat knew damn well what she was planning. "Lori take her!" she barked quickly as she handed her Sophie. She ran forward and clutched Carol tightly by the shoulders. "You can't, you'll get yourself killed", she told her sternly.

"I, I have to, my baby … my baby needs me", she wept bitterly. Merricat forcibly turned Carol to face her and cupped her face tightly with her hands. "Carol, Carol look at me", she commanded, "Look at me okay? You can't, but I can. I'm going in after her now". Carol continued to cry helplessly as Merricat released her.

"Need some help over here!" attention was momentarily diverted to Daryl, who had come into view, hauling T-Dog on his shoulder.

"Jesus Christ", Merricat gasped.

"Is he bit?" Shane thundered as he and Glenn emerged together.

"Naw, he cut his arm badly on some glass", Daryl brought them to speed as Shane helped T-Dog over to the RV, letting him rest up against it. Merricat knelt down quickly, "Dale!" she shouted, "Medibag now!". She shook T-Dog lightly, "T, T can you hear me, keep this arm upright, okay?"

She heard Dale cry out Andrea's name, and Merricat's heart leapt, _please no more_.

"Is she?" Lori wavered.

"She's okay", Dale replied wearily as he emerged from the RV and handed Merricat the bag. She used bandages to tourniquet the wound, and then turned back to Dale, "Sit beside him, use the cloth to press firmly on it to compress the flow of blood. Once it's slowed, clean it and bandage him up". Merricat rose to her feet, and turned to Daryl, "Sophia got chased into the woods by two walkers, we need to go after her". There was no need to tell him twice, as he immediately grabbed his bow from the ground. Merricat retrieved her rifle, "Shane", she said, "You stay here with everyone, make sure that T doesn't fall asleep, keep everyone together, keep watch in case Rick or Sophia manage to get back first".

The pair took off sprinting into the woods, Merricat with her rifle slung over her shoulder and sword at her hips. She hadn't said goodbye to Sophie or told her how much she loved her. She prayed, pleaded with God, don't let that be the last time that she would see her sister again.

It was Rick's trail that they picked up, although his was quickly found to be intertwined with Sophia's, which gave the two trackers hope – maybe he had gotten to her already. It brought them deeper into the woods.

They finally found Rick, leaning over a walker that he had just put down, with a large, bloodied rock in his hand. "Rick!" Merricat cried as she ran forward, he looked up wearily to see the pair. "Where's Sophia?" she asked desperately.

"I had to lead the walkers away, I got her to hide", he answered, almost in a daze.

"Where?" Daryl demanded.

Shane and Glenn had joined them after securing the camp, figuring to disregard Merricat's advice and go after them anyway. Rick brought them all down to a stream's edge, and Merricat's heart dropped as they discovered Sophia's hiding place beneath an uprooted tree to be empty. The three stood with murky brown water up to their knees as they looked over the immediate area. Daryl peered around it, his eyes scanning and darting quickly like a hawk's. "You sure this' the spot?" he asked with uncertainty.

"I left her right here", Rick confirmed with confidence, "I drew the walkers way off in that direction up the creek".

"Without a paddle, since where we've landed", Daryl commented. Merricat took her own time to analyse the departed hiding spot, entangled amongst one of the veins, she found a short blonde hair. Merricat plucked It out carefully, holding it up against the light, "she was here that's for sure", she spoke, and showed the hair to Daryl.

"She was gone by the time I got back here", Rick informed them, "A figured she took off and ran back to the group, a told her, go that way and keep the sun on her left shoulder".

"Hey short round, step off to one side you're mucking up the trail", Daryl called to Glenn, Merricat couldn't disagree, she had caught what Daryl was looking at, slight indentations in the earth leading out of the creek, and Glenn was standing in the way, like contaminating a crime scene.

"Assumin' she knows her left from her right", Shane added, and if Merricat wasn't mistaken, he seemed to be suggesting that Rick had made the wrong call in leaving her.

"She understood it fine", Rick growled.

"She could be tired and scared man, she had her close call – two walkers. Have to wonder how much of whatcha said stuck".

Merricat sniffed, but ignored him, crouching down closer to get a better look, "You see that?" she murmured to Daryl.

"Yeah", he replied and looked up to Rick, "There's clear prints right here, she did what you said, headed back to the highway. We gotta spread out". Glenn helped the trio out of the creek, both Daryl and Merricat took point, with the others following behind.

Merricat glanced over her shoulder, reading Rick's expression perfectly. "We're gonna find her, a'right? Don't worry", she told him.

They continued through the trees, following her trail. She was headed right in the direction of camp, until both Merricat and Daryl could both see a violent switch in her markings – she had veered of course.

"She was doin jus' fine until right here", Daryl informed the others as he crouched down.

"But she didn't keep going", Merricat continued, "She veered off in that direction".

"Why would she do that?" Glenn asked.

"Maybe she saw somethin? Spooked her, made her run off" Shane suggested.

"A walker?" Glenn quivered.

"Naw, don't see any other foot prints", Daryl muttered.

"What'd you reckon Rick? Want us to flesh this place out?" Shane asked.

"No", Rick began, "Its better if you and Glenn get back to the highway, before everyone starts panicking. Let them know that we're on her trail and doing everything we can but most of all keep everybody calm".

"A can keep em busy scavenging cars", Shane agreed, and Merricat couldn't help but glare, isn't that what she had essentially told him before she and Daryl had left? "Think up a few other chores, keep em occupied".

"Glenn", Merricat called as they began to take off, he turned to face the girl, "Look after Sophie for me, okay?"

He nodded and smiled, before following off after Shane.

Once more, Daryl and Merricat picked up the trail, their eyes rooted to the ground. They kept pressing on, until Rick glanced around in frustration, "The tracks are gone".

"They're faint", Daryl corrected him, "But they ain't gone".

"She came through here", Merricat pointed out, and Daryl nodded in agreement.

"How can you both tell?" Rick asked, "I don't see anything, just dirt and grass".

"Wanna lesson in tracking or you wanna find that girl and get our ass off that interstate", Daryl answered breezily, it was a tad cruel bit Merricat found herself stifling a smirk.

They kept going for miles, but Merricat barely noticed the time go by, only one thought kept echoing against the walls of her skull: find Sophia. For the first time, she knew the value of her use to Rick and the others, like Daryl, she was in her element.

There was a sudden rumble coming from amongst a thick foliage of bushes, and immediately all three of them crouched to the ground with their weapons raised. Slowly, they made their approach, below in the trees they found one walker aimlessly shuffling on his feet. Daryl gave her a signal and she ran ahead, directly into the walker's line of vision. Its paling eyes fixed on her as Merricat gave a loud whistle. It hissed and groaned but was immediately silenced by the arrow that had lodged in between the eyes. Daryl had come up from behind and shot it, and once it fell, both he, Rick and Merricat approached the corpse.

Daryl retrieved his arrow, And Rick pulled out a pair of gloves stuffed inside his back pocket, Merricat crouched low, she knew what he was thinking, the stomach of the walker was extremely bloated – which meant only one thing, it had recently fed.

"What are you looking for?" she asked him.

"Skin under the finger nails", he muttered, he then opened the walker's mouth, delving inside. "There's flesh caught in its teeth", he informed them, and Merricat's heart began to beat rapidly against her chest. He managed to prize it out, holding it up for the others to inspect, "But what kinda flesh?" Daryl asked.

Merricat gulped, and glanced again at the walker's bulbous stomach, "Only one sure way ta find out", she told them, and gazed up at the two men. Rick nodded, and removed his knife from his belt, preparing to cut open the walker.

Daryl placed an arm on Rick's shoulder, "Here, I'll do it", he volunteered, retrieving his own, much larger bowie knife. "How many kills you skinned and gutted in your life anyway? And mine's sharper"

From the moment Daryl began to cut into the walker's flesh, the most purifying smell poured out from it's organs. "Oh good Lord", Merricat choked, covering her nose and mouth, it was utterly rancid.

"Here comes the bad part", Daryl warned them, as he violently pulled open the corpse's ribcage, and began rummaging around in search of the stomach. He began to pull out whatever organs got in his way, the gallbladder, the liver, each blackened with decay and nearly liquified. The sight alone was enough to make you sick, but the smell, dear God the smell. Merricat had to fight against the violent contractions in her throat.

"Yeah", Daryl muttered finally, "He's had a big meal not that long ago, a feel it in there", he finally managed to pull out the engorged stomach, laying it carefully on the ground. "Is a'right, I got this", Rick said, and at once cut into the stomach's lining, and with his knife sorted through it's half-digested contents. Although it was Daryl who found the defining feature that both made Merricat want to empty the contents of her stomach and raised her hopes. He raised the skull high, and judging from its teeth, it was clear it was not human.

"This gross bastard's had himself a woodchuck for lunch", Daryl confirmed, and Merricat let out a sigh of relief, "Thank God".

"At least we know", Rick agreed, "At least we know". They all rose to their feet, and Rick stepped a bit closer to Merricat, "Uh-uh", she groaned, shielding her nose once more, "A love you both like family, but for the sake of my sense of smell y'all can stay at a distance with that gunk on both your arms".

Daryl and Rick shared a look and gazed down at the black slime that decorated their forearms. They couldn't deny it, she had a point.

They continued on as long as they could, but it seemed as though time as against them as the sun began to fall lower into the sky. It was Rick who turned to them first, "It's gonna be dark real soon", he spoke calmly, but Merricat immediately turned, "We have to keep going", she warned him firmly, and continued to climb up the hill, but her heart sank when she saw that Daryl had stopped as well.

She gave both the men a pleading look, "We have to keep going, we have to find her".

"An we will", Daryl assured her before Rick had the chance, "But you know as well as me that we won't be able to see shit in the dark".

"And neither will Sophia, we can't, we can't leave her here tonight", Merricat protested.

Rick looked at her sympathetically, "We aren't giving up, we can pick up the trail at first light".

"But she's just a little girl", Merricat felt herself grow impatient with the two men, "You both know walkers are more active at night, we can't, we can't just leave her out here".

"Merr, she's a smart girl, she'll hold up somewhere for the night, we'll achieve nothin, wandering around in the dark, you know that", Rick tried to reason. Merricat did know that. She knew that Sophia's tracks would be impossible to see … but every fibre in her being cried out for that little girl – it was almost instinctual, this inherent need to find that girl, protect her, keep her safe … not give up on her. Merricat bowed her head in defeat, she couldn't force the two men to carry on searching with her, and she knew that it would be suicide to stay out there on her own … and what good would she be to Sophia dead? "Okay, okay", she conceited, and the three made their way back in the direction of camp.

To Merricat's dismay, it was Carol who was waiting at the edge of the road to meet them. She hung behind Daryl and Rick, her body feeling as though it was suddenly made of lead … she couldn't bear to meet her eyes.

"You, you didn't find her?" her voice was faint, barely a whisper, and Merricat felt her heart wrench at the sound.

"Her trail went cold", he told her, "We'll pick it up again at first light". This was clearly no comfort to the woman … who seemed, in that instant, to come apart at the seams. "You can't leave my daughter out there on her own, to spend the night alone in the woods".

Rick glanced anxiously at Merricat, he could hear the echoes between the two women's protests, and his heart grew heavy, "Out in the dark, we …" Merricat couldn't finish, she couldn't convince herself that it was true, all she desperately wanted to do was to go back out there, and not stop until she brought Sophia home.

"Out in the dark's no good", Daryl continued solemnly, "We'd jus' be trippin over ourselves, we'd be gettin' lost".

"But she's twelve – she can't be out there on her own", Carol cried, becoming more and more undone.

"I know this is hard but am' asking you not to panic, we know she was out there", Rick tried to calm her.

"And we tracked her for a while", Daryl added quickly.

"We have to make this an organised effort - Daryl knows the woods better than anybody, and Merricat, well she's been huntin since before she could walk, I've asked them both to oversee this", Rick sounded. Which wasn't exactly true, he hadn't asked them, but then again, it wasn't as if either of them would refuse.

Carol's breathing began to quicken as she gave Daryl a once over, "Is, is that blood?" she stammered.

Merricat froze, they had agreed not to tell them about the walker they had killed, to help everyone remain calm, now, judging by the look on Rick's face, he thought it best to tell the truth. "We took down a walker", he admitted, and as expected, it nearly sent Carol into a panic.

"Oh dear, Oh God", she moaned.

"There was so sign that it was anywhere near Sophia", Rick tried to assure her.

"How can you know that?" Andrea insisted, clearly sceptical.

"We cut the som'bitch open, made sure", Daryl answered her.

Merricat surely thought that such a confession would be the worst revelation uttered amongst them, what came next proved her flatly wrong. Carol addressed Rick with a hateful glare, "How, how could you just leave her out there to begin with, how could you just leave her?"

Merricat understood that Carol was a mother in turmoil, but she thought she had gone too far, and swiftly came to Rick's defence. "He didn't have a choice Carol", she spoke up as she finally recovered her voice, Rick glanced up at her, thankful for her support, "Those two walkers were on them, he had to draw them away to give Sophia her best chance, it's what any of us would have done".

"How's she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child", Carol whispered.

Rick fell to his knees, buckling over with the guilt, "It, it was my only option, the only choice I could make".

"An none of us doubt that", Shane spoke as well in Rick's defence.

"My little girl got left in the woods", she choked in anguish, and Merricat flocked to her side, "Carol, I know this is hard … believe me I know, but you have to keep strong okay? Gotta keep strong for Sophia". But nothing could stop the surge of pain that struck Carol at that point, her lip began to tremble frantically, as she, Lori and Andrea remained at her side, trying to support her as best they could.

Once the sun had finally set, Lori and Andrea made their first attempt at moving Carol inside. She spent the first few hours of the evening crying bitterly inside the RV, where she would be sleeping alone that night. She had quietened down a little, but every once in a while, a stifled cry could be heard, and everyone would be reminded of the great sense of loss and dread that hung in the air. Carl had been almost inconsolable, as had Sophie – she couldn't understand what had happened, and Merricat was terrified, terrified that the stress and confusion would send her into another fit – and that would be the last thing that anyone needed. Sophie refused to leave her sister's arms, petrified of being lost too, and so Merricat found herself rooted beside the fire for the better have of the evening. Her back ached and she was stiff all over, but she dared not move, as Sophie had finally calmed down enough to slip back into a sleep. And so she held her as she was, until Shane came and sat beside her.

"She a'right?" he asked, gesturing to the sleeping girl.

Merricat looked at him, uncertainty flashing in her eyes, "I think so", she admitted, and looked down at her sister again, "I hope so".

"Can't be easy all this", he pondered meaningfully, "S'pecially bein so young".

"Is it easy for any of us?" Merricat sighed, before adding with a small, sad smile, "And we're all old".

"True that", Shane agreed, "Listen, on the search tomorrow, Rick only wants me you, him and Daryl carrying", he informed her quietly.

"Carrying?" she repeated.

"Guns", he elaborated whilst scratching his neck.

"Why, did somethin happen?"

"Naw, no. Not really. When yah think about it, none of the rest of em has had any proper trainin, and the last thing we need is people firing off rounds every time they hear a branch break or some leaves rustle, know what am sayin?" he confided.

Merricat nodded her agreement, "Yeah, a' get it – flipping mother of god", she hissed suddenly, as she felt her back seize up in some Godawful fashion.

"You a'right there?" he asked, with an actual look of concern.

"I've been sittin in the same position for over two hours straight with a five-year-old in mah lap", she complained, "how'd yeah think a' am?"

Shane chuckled a little, "Want me to take her for a bit, let yah stretch your legs?"

Merricat was taken off-guard by the offer, and at first felt hesitant, did she really trust Shane to look after Sophie? _No. Stop it. It was just a fight, he's your people … of course you can trust him_. Merricat forced a smile, "You don't mind?"

"Naw, although, you'd be doin me a service if you could take the time to talk ta Rick", he asked her, and Merricat sighed, "He still sittin on his own?"

Shane nodded, "He's real torn up over what happened, won't talk ta Lori or Carl much, but a' have a feelin that he'll listen to what you have ta say". Merricat agreed, and Shane carefully bundled Sophie into his arms. It was heaven to be able to stand to full height, she raised her arms high above her head to stretch her aching limbs. "God that feels good", she sighed, "I'll go and find Rick now".

"I appreciate it", he said, "really a' do". Merricat smiled and walked off to find the Deputy Sheriff. It wasn't difficult, he had isolated himself to the edge of their campsite, standing rigid with rifle perched and ready.

"I doubt you can see much through that scope at this time of the night", she called quietly walking to his side. Rick barely turned over his shoulder, his eyes fixed on the pitch-black void before them. "Whatcha doin there Grimes?"

"Keepin watch", he answered gruffly, his throat dry and cracking, as though he had been crying.

"I'll relieve yah, you need to rest, get somethin to eat, it's been a long day", Merricat suggested.

"I'm fine thanks, am' more use here", he replied curtly, his gaze still refusing to meet her mismatched eyes.

She smiled sadly, "Rick … you did everything that you could for that little girl".

"Merr don't", he interrupted her hoarsely.

Merricat gazed at the man, his face was riddled with guilt, you could see it in his straining eyes, in his pursed lips … she could only imagine what was going through his mind, clearly, she had to employ a different strategy. She sighed, and then spoke softly, "You know, when a' was ten, a' tried to runaway from home", she glanced up for a moment, but the Sherriff's eyes were still fixed on the road. "Left with nothin but a crappy little pocket knife and a few biscuits I'd swiped from the breakfast table that morning. We was stayin up at Lake Charles at the time, in De Folie, huh, I hated that fuckin place", she paused for a moment as the memories flooded back, another glance at Rick, he had still yet to move. "Big old' plantation house, with the white columns, built at the edge o' nowhere, was a twenty-mile drive to the nearest town, and even then, a great big thicket of woods between us and anyone … mah daddy's favourite huntin grounds. An me, ha, a thought it was a helluva good idea to go on my own through the woods, a was out there five days before anybody found me", now she had finally gotten Rick's attention, "Merr, a see what you're tryn'a do, but it doesn't change the fact that Sophia is out there … and that's on me".

"Rick Grimes", she snapped finally, "Now you listen to me", she forced him to look at her, "This … is not on you. Okay? I said it once and I'll say it again, you did what any of us would have done Rick. I wouldn't have done differently, neither would Shane – Or Daryl".

"No", Rick wagged his head, "Daryl wouldn't have left without his bow, he would 'a took down those walkers before they would have come anywhere near Sophia – and you Merr, I've seen you with that sword, you an' I both know you would 'a stood your ground, taken them both down and protected Sophia, you would have done differently, you would have done better". Merricat felt her heart soften as he turned away from her, desperate to keep it together, "How, how am a' supposed to lead, when a' can't even keep a little girl safe?"

Merricat stared at him, no matter what she tried to muster, she couldn't think of anything to say, instead, she placed a hand on his shoulder, and then hugged him tightly. He didn't respond at first, but within seconds, he dropped his gun, and wrapped his arms tightly around her. They stood there embracing one another, there was nothing romantic or suggestive in the gesture, it was a friend trying to be there for a friend. Somethin her mother always told her, when you're lost for words, there's nothin a hug can't fix. So she held him tightly, trying to convey what words couldn't.

They stayed like that for a while, until Merricat finally broke them apart, and she smiled weakly, "You're a good man, Grimes, and you're a good leader. We are going to find Sophia, and then, we're gonna get to Fort Benning, you understand me?"

Her smile was returned, and Rick nodded shyly, "Yes ma'am".

"Good. Go on now, get some rest – come on you made me wait on the lines when ma head was in two places. Time ta return the favour, I'll take over here", she instructed him firmly.

Rick finally conceited as he handed her his rifle, "You're such a mother", he laughed as he began to make his way back to his tent. A faint of a smile ghosted on her lips, before she turned and perched the gun snugly in her arms and stared out into the distance, keeping watch for Sophia, for walkers, for anything that might dare and try to hurt her people.

* * *

"Everybody takes a weapon", Rick told them, handing over an arrangement of knives and axes. He and Daryl had been up just before first light, and everyone else had quickly followed suit. It would be their first morning searching for Sophia, and hopefully their last. T-Dog and Dale would be remaining behind, and the older man had kindly agreed to watch Sophie while Merricat was on the search.

"These aren't the kind of weapons we need", Andrea snapped, "What about the guns?"

"Haven't we been over that? Daryl, Merr, Rick and I are carrying. Can't have people poppin off rounds every time a tree rustles".

"It's not the trees I'm worried about", Andrea insisted angrily.

"Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, and a herd happens to be passin by. En' it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it".

Tension hung thick after that conversation, and Rick nodded in the direction of Daryl and Merricat, it was their turn to take up the helm.

"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek. It's our only landmark", Daryl informed them.

"Everyone stays quiet and stay sharp", Merricat instructed, "Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other. Any trouble, anything at all, you holler to me, Rick, Daryl or Shane. Stay close and watch each other's backs".

And like that, they were back off into the woods. They kept in formation, but Merricat scouted further ahead of the group, communicating with Daryl through different bird calls. She was fast and nimble and was quick to spot any indicators of danger. Together they managed to cover a good distance, but Merricat halted when she saw a large object further ahead, hidden amongst the trees. She crouched a little lower, taking a few more steps forward, it was a tent. She immediately cupped her hands around her mouth, and imitated a bullfinch, whistling three times.

Within minutes Daryl was at her side, crossbow in hand, she pressed her forefinger to her lips, and pointed towards the tent, he nodded, and beckoned Rick and the others to come forward, slowly.

"She could be in there", Shane commented. But Merricat and Daryl knew to be more cautious, "Could be a whole bunch 'a things in there", Daryl muttered as he unsheathed his bowie knife, together they approached the tent in silence, Merricat with her sword raised in a defensive guard. Merricat circled it, keeping her eyes sharp for any signs of movement. Daryl on the other hand peered through a crack in the tent's lining, but neither of the two could make much of what was in side … there was only one way to find out.

They reconvened, and Daryl slowly began to unzip the opening with Merricat covering him, her sword raised in case of any nasty surprises.

The only nasty surprise that awaited them inside was the stench of death. Merricat was the first to step inside, Daryl followed. A decaying corpse sat in it's chair with a gun in its mouth. Merricat found herself choking violently, and quickly covered her mouth after making a sign of the cross.

"Daryl? Merricat?" they both heard Carol call their names, but neither answered. They were taken aback by the sight of the wretched man, he had been dead for over a week by the looks of it, his jaw blown clean off, and maggots enjoying a feast on the rotting flesh of his face. _May the Lord have mercy on your soul._

Merricat met Daryl's eyes, it wasn't Sophia, that was something. Before they emerged Daryl quickly prized the gun from the dead man's hand, stuffing it into the back of his pants.

"It ain't her", he informed the others as they emerged from the tent, once more Merricat found it difficult to look at Carol's eyes.

"What's in there?" Andrea asked.

"Some guy", he answered quickly, "Did what Jenner said, opted out. Isn't that what he called it?" His words were laced with a particular amount of malice and contempt, and it was a no brainer as to who it was intended for. Before they had left the highway, Andrea had once more asked Dale to giver her back her gun, and the conversation quickly turned volatile as Andrea ridiculed Dale for forcing her to leave the CDC, for stopping her from killing herself. It had become clear that Daryl didn't have a very high opinion of suicide.

Before anyone could say another word, the most remarkable thing happened, the forest began to echo with the sounds of Church bells ringing. The need for stealth and slow procession immediately evaporated as everyone bolted in the direction of the ringing. "What direction?" Shane asked quickly, it seemed to be coming from all around them.

"This way", Merricat pointed out, "North, I'm pretty sure".

"Damn it's hard to tell out here", Shane snapped.

"If we hear them then maybe Sophia does", Carol chirped in optimistically, or was it more out of desperation? Merricat cast a glance over the woman, praying silently that she was right.

" – Someone ringing those bells, they could be calling others".

" – Or signalling that they found her".

"Hell she could be ringing them herself", Rick announced, "C'mon!"

They ran for a brief fifteen minutes before they came across the clearing, and the small Church came into view. It was surrounded by a small graveyard. But there it was, pristine and white, like a beacon of hope in a world gone mad … and maybe, it would be Sophia's salvation. But as Merricat surveyed the building, she felt a terrible pitfall in her stomach, "This, can't be it", she breathed, "There's no steeple, no bells…" She didn't want to admit it, but still, how could they have gotten the wrong church? How many more in the perimeter could there possibly be?

They pressed forward anyhow, running in between the graves that circled the building. They ran to the large wooden doors, she, Daryl, and Rick took up the lead, ready for the worst of what they could find within the walls. They opened the doors, three people were seated at different pews, and for the briefest of seconds, Merricat smiled, but then they turned, and she saw their faces … their decaying, snarling faces.

They split up, Daryl and Rick took out the two males with borrowed machetes, whilst Merricat headed straight for the female. The veiled walker hissed vehemently at her, but Merricat without saying a pray, plunged her sword deep into the female's skull. They finished the three walkers off quickly, but it left a grizzly scene. Merricat felt a deep sense of sadness, shedding blood in the Lord's house, what had she come to? Rick immediately began to scream Sophie's name, rapidly kicking open all the doors of the small church. But Merricat's eyes fixed onto the large wooden statue of our Lord on the Cross, it had been so long since she had seen one. "Yo JC, you taken requests?" Daryl lamented bitterly, but before the young woman knew it, she was dropping to her knees. The bells began to toll again, and everyone flooded outside once more, but not Merricat, she remained rooted to the spot.

 _God, it's been a while since I've made such a personal prayer … actually spoke to you. It's easy to recite the ones you learn in Sunday school, like reading lines from a play, you don't always have to put real meaning behind it. But God, if you're listening … and alotta people would argue that you aren't anymore, there's a little girl, Sophia, now, she's a good kid. Bit shy, and quiet, but a sweet little thing. She got lost and, we've been trying to find her, all of us. And I know, hell, even a thought for a while, alotta people do, call this the end of the world, time of judgement finally upon us and all … but am not asking you to save the world, it's gone to shit, we messed it up, that's on us. And I know, I shouldn't be askin for anything, but please, let us find her, let us find Sophia safe and sound. Bring her home, bring her home to her mother and the people who love her. I know, I shouldn't speak to you, with all that I've done, but, am not asking you to forgive me – I know that I'm not worth it … but this little girl, she is. Please, please God, let her be alive, let her come home. Amen._

Merricat hoped that God was listening, she was hoping that someone was listening, she needed someone to be listening. She bowed her head, but felt someone kneel beside her, she looked up quickly, and found Carol looking at her, "You, you don't mind?" she croaked wearily.

The young woman wagged her head, "Not at all".

Carol prayed with her, but she spoke her prayers out loud, "Father forgive me, I don't deserve your mercy. I prayed for safe passage from Atlanta and you provided. I prayed for Ed to be punished for laying his hands on me, and … for looking at his own daughter". Merricat froze beside her, her whole body going as stoic as stone. She felt her throat constrict tightly as the air was sucked out of her lungs. No, she didn't just hear that … oh dear God no. "Whatever sickness was growing in his soul, I prayed that you would put a stop to it. Give me a chance to raise her right, help her not make my mistakes … she's so fearful. She's so young in her way, she hasn't had a chance. I prayed for Ed's death, that was a sin … please, don't let this be my punishment". Merricat felt as though the world was falling apart around her, she couldn't hear anymore, her stomach churned as her chest tightened, and she knew damn well what was happening to her. "Excuse me", she gasped as she quickly stumbled to her feet and practically bolted from the church. Her frantic exit was noted by everyone in the room, but non-more so than Carol, she glanced and watched as the young girl ran from her, and all at once every suspicion she held was confirmed in the older woman's mind.

Merricat ran around to the side of the church, unwanted tears pricking her eyes. Her heart was racing as her head spun at a thousand miles per hour, all those images flashed before her mind, the things she was trying so hard to forget. Why was she so easily set off? Why was she so weak? She was always the strong one, so why did she keep falling to pieces?

She leaned against the Church wall for support as she fought desperately to control her ragged breathing. Carol quickly caught up with her, with Lori, Glenn and Daryl at her heels. "Merri are you alright?" she asked, her own eyes still damp and bloodshot.

"I'm fine", Merricat choked, "Jus, just felt a little nauseous all of a sudden".

Carol tilted her head sympathetically and took a few steps closer to the young woman. "Merricat", she whispered softly, low so that the others would not hear, "I know".

Merricat blinked rapidly, her face blanching, "I, I don't know what you mean", she stammered, but Carol's resolve did not move, she took another two paces, "I know". Merricat felt her lip begin to quiver uncontrollably, no one, no one had _ever_ acknowledged it to her before. Ever. Carol threw her arms tightly around her, and Merricat found herself burying her face into the woman's shoulder. She should have been the one comforting her, she should have been the one holding it together for Carol, but, but she couldn't draw upon the strength to do it. Carol knew, somehow, she'd always known. "Thank you", she whispered through tears. The others amongst them had no idea the magnitude of what had just transpired between the two women, the gravity of what that meant for Merricat. To not be dismissed, to not be disregarded, to be heard without having to speak. To be _believed_. Carol had just granted her the greatest kindness that anyone had in her entire life, just with two simple words.

They remained like that until Rick finally emerged from he Church, looking shaken. They all settled beneath the shade of the tree whilst Shane spoke with him. Merricat felt a strange catharsis wash over her, the shaking stopped, as did the tightening of her chest, it all just … stopped. And so she sat peacefully still beneath the tree with Carol on one side of her and Lori with Carl on the other. She didn't feel the eyes on her, just one set of blue eyes who couldn't shift their gaze away. Daryl was absolutely bewildered by what he just witnessed. He honestly couldn't make head nor tails of it, all he knew for certain, that there was somethin else botherin the woman, and he was damn sure that whatever it was, it was bad.

Rick and Shane approached them, ready with their instructions. "A'right", Shane spoke, " Y'all gotta follow the creek-bed back, okay Daryl you're in charge, me and Rick are jus gonna hang back and search this area another hour or so – just to be thorough".

"Splittin us up?" Daryl remarked with uncertainty, "you sure?"

"Yeah", Shane replied, "We'll catch up to you".

" I wanna stay too", Carl spoke up suddenly, "I'm her friend".

Neither Shane nor Rick responded, to everyone's surprise, it was Lori, "You just be careful, okay?" she told him, effectively giving Carl permission.

"I will", he smiled. Would this be the milestones of children in the new world? Going on their first scavenge? Their first search mission? There first walker kill? Seems a pretty big jump from being able to use the toilet and articulate your emotions instead of screaming. Merricat thought hard on this, these would be the challenges facing Sophie, and yet she still made her work on her reading and activity books. Yes that was all the standard before but … is that what counts as preparing children for the world anymore?

And like that, they parted ways. Shane, Rick and Carl pressed on in the search for Sophia, and the rest, Merricat included, would return to camp.

The air was thick with a heavy burden hanging over their heads, almost like a funeral procession. It was Carol who stopped, she looked defeated as she slumped down onto a fallen tree, "So this is it?" she sighed, "This is the whole plan?"

"Guess the plan is to widdle us down into smaller and smaller groups", Daryl commented cynically as he lay back against a tree. Merricat shot him a look, they had always trusted Rick, she didn't understand why they had to question him now.

"Carrying knives and pointy sticks", Andrea jibed, and then shot a glare at Lori, "I see you have a gun", she scoffed.

"Why you want it"? Lori finally snapped, holding it in her outstretched arm, "Here. Take it, cause am' sick of the looks you're given me". Everyone seemed taken aback by Lori's honesty, including Andrea, who gave her a less than pleasant look as she took the gun from her.

"All of you", Lori growled, as she herself sat down, she turned first to Carol, "Honey, I can't imagine what you are going through, and I would do anything to stop it, but you have gotta stop blaming Rick. It is in your face every time you look at him. And once more he didn't hesitant for a second, did he? I don't know, if any of us would've gone after her the way he did or made the hard decisions that he had to make, or if anybody could have done anything differently". It was clear that Lori's words resonated with everyone, you could see it with the look of guilt etched into their faces. Merricat knew for herself that she had not doubted Rick, and had come to his defence, but still, she understood where Lori was coming from, it couldn't be easy to watch the man you love get bombarded with judging faces when he was trying his best to keep it all together.

"Well, anybody?" Lori continued, "Y'all look to him and then you blame him when he's not perfect. If you think you can do this without him go right ahead, nobody is stopping you".

Silence followed her words, but like Merricat knew, sometimes actions conveyed what you needed said when words failed, and that is what happened, when Andrea handed Lori back her gun. "We should keep moving", she said quietly.

Daryl took point whilst Merricat brought up the rear of the group. For once her sword hang in its sheath while she kept her rifle in hand, judging it made people feel a little bit safer.

They walked for miles, rarely speaking, there was very little to talk about. All Merricat could think about was seeing Sophie, she'd had an epiphany of sorts outside the Church. Sophia was not prepared for being lost in the woods, she'd been left in the woods for days at a time at that age as part of her father's rigorous training. She thought it child abuse back then, but look at her now, her hunting skills, her survivalists skills, all that was painfully instilled in her by her father, is what had been keeping her alive. She had decided, then and there, that Sophie would be prepared if ever she found herself in such a situation. Merricat's duty was to prepare her for the world, and that's exactly what she was going to do.

They'd heard a gunshot at lest twenty minutes ago, just the one. Merricat had volunteered to head back to make sure everything was okay, she was a tracker, she had argued, she would be able to find her way back to camp easy enough. But as Daryl had put it (rather bluntly as usual) Rick had put him in charge of getting everyone safely back to camp, and he wasn't about to let her wander off and get lost over a gunshot that could have came from anywhere. After five minutes bickering between them, Merricat finally conceited to pressure from Lori and Carol. But she and Lori kept turning back, kept glancing over their shoulders. Eventually Andrea spoke up, "You both still worried about that?"

"It was a gunshot", Lori repeated worriedly.

"We all heard it", Glenn reminded her.

"Why one though?" she pressed on, "Why just the one gunshot?"

"Maybe they took down a walker", Daryl suggested with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Don't be patronizing", Merricat snapped irritably, "We both know that neither Rick nor Shane would use a gun to put down one walker – they'd do it quietly".

"And, shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?" Carol added, hugging tightly to the strap of her bag.

"Nothin we can do about it anyway", Daryl answered, rather indifferently, "We'd run around these woods chasin echoes".

"So what do you suggest we do?" Merricat countered, not liking his tone very much.

"Same as we've been doing, beat the bush for Sophia and work are way back to the highway", he alliterated, before beginning to walk once more, but Andrea took the moment to approach Carol, "I'm so sorry for what you're going through", she confided quietly, "I know how you feel".

Merricat watched Carol's face shift uneasily, because the implication of Andrea's words was that, just as she lost Amy, Carol had lost Sophia for good. "I suppose you do", she sniffed, before bowing her head, "The thought of her, out here, by herself … it's the not knowing that's killing me. I just keep hoping and praying that she doesn't end up like Amy".

Merricat knew that Carol didn't mean it intentionally, but she had just crossed a line, but she quickly realised her mistake, and clutched Andrea by the shoulders, "Oh God, that's the worst thing I've ever said".

"We're all hoping and praying with you", is all Andrea could answer with, "for what it's worth".

"I'll tell you what it's worth", Daryl interrupted, seemingly tired of the conversation, "Not a damn thing. It's a waste of time all this hopin and prayin, cause we're gonna locate that little girl, and she's gonna be just fine. Am I the only one standing around here? Good Lord". And with that, he retook his position at the head of the group. Merricat couldn't help but smile, and neither could Lori apparently, and all the women for one blissful moment, stood grinning at one another. Revelation of the day, Daryl Dixon is just a big old softie.

Merricat one more found herself at the rear of the group, pondering on what Daryl had said, was he honestly that confident in finding Sophia, or was he just putting on a brave face for Carol's sake? It was hard to tell with that damn unreadable face of his. You'd think for a man who was prone to extreme emotions, that you'd be able to see it on his face. They searched along the creek-bed for another hour, but daylight was not on their side. The sun was beginning to dip in the sky, but Merricat did not want to be the one to say it.

"We'll lose the light before long, I think we should call it", Daryl voiced what Merricat was thinking … and she was grateful for it.

"Let's head back", Lori sighed.

"We'll pick it up again tomorrow?" Carol pressed eagerly.

But Merricat interjected firmly, "We'll find her tomorrow".

They headed in the direction of camp, it was clear that everyone was exhausted, drained from what felt like the longest day in living memory.

"How much further?" Andrea finally asked impatiently, they had forgone the normal formation, instead walking in one long horizontal line.

"Not much", Daryl assured her, "Maybe a hundred yards, as the crow flies".

"Too bad we aren't crows", she complained.

They continued to walk almost as if they were walkers themselves, trailing their feet and shuffling along tiredly. But their quite march was interrupted by a blood-curdling scream: Andrea.

Merricat ignited into action, unsheathing her sword and bounding forward, "Andrea!" she bellowed, the others followed her hotly – but she was the fastest. She had Andrea within her sights, and she was on the ground, with a walker coming straight for her.

Merricat's heart was racing as she ran as fast as her body would allow her, but she was petrified, would she reach her in time?

But the most amazing thing happened, Merricat halted in her tracks as she watched a brown horse gallop into view, with a rider on it's back. The rider swung a bat, cracking the walker on the skull, sending it flying. Sh was a woman, roughly the same age as herself, with short, light brown hair.

"Lori, Lori Grimes?" she called anxiously.

"Whoa, am Lori", Lori stated as the rest of the group approached them.

The rider seemed determined and spoke at a lightning pace with the greatest urgency in her voice, "Rick sent me you've got to come now".

"What?"

"There's been an accident and Carl's been shot. He's still alive but you gotta come now". Lori did not hesitate as her face turned to that of a dread that only a mother could comprehend. "Rick needs you!" the rider cried, "Just come now".

Lori dropped her bag, and immediately took the rider's hand as she hauled her up onto the horse.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa", Daryl objected quickly, "We don't know this girl, you can't get on that horse".

The rider ignored him, "Rick said you've got others on the highway? That big traffic stall?"

"Uh-huh", Glenn stammered.

"Backtrack to Feigen road. Two miles down is our farm, look for the mail box the name's Greene", and like that, she was gone, dashing through the woods with Lori on her back.

But Merricat couldn't process anything that she had said as she looked on in horror, only one thing stuck, looping on and on in her brain,

 _Carl had been shot. Carl had been shot. Carl had been shot._

* * *

 _ **Thoughts?**_


End file.
